The Gospels : with moral reflections on each verse

3y /

LIBEAEY

Theological Seminary,

PRINCETON, N. J. j

BS 2555 .Q3 1830 v. 3
Bible. .
The Gospels

SELECT
CHRISTIAN AUTHORS,

WITH

INTRODUCTORY ESSAYS.

N°- 57.

Vol. III.

THE

GOSPELS;

WITH

MORAL REFLECTIONS

ON EACH VERSE.

BY

PASQUIER QUESNEL.

WITH

AN INTRODUCTORY ESSAY,

BY THE

REV. DANIEL WILSON, A. M.

VICAR OF ISLINGTON.

IN THREE VOLUMES.
VOL. III.

GLASGOW:

PRINTED FOR WILLIAM COLLINS;

OLIVER & BOYD, WM. WHYTE & CO. AND WM. OLEPHANT, EDINBURGH;

\V\ F. WAKEMAN, AND WM. CURRY, JUN. & CO. DUBLIN ;

WHITTAKER, TREACHER, & ARNOT ; HAMILTON, ADAMS, & CO.

SIMPKIN & MARSHALL; BALDWIN & CRADOCK ;

AND HURST, CHANCE, & CO. LONDON.

MDCCCXXX.

Printed by W. Collins Sc Co.
Glasgow.

PBIHCE
THEOLOGICAL

THE

GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST,

ACCORDING TO

ST. LUKE.

CHAPTER XVIII.

Sect. I. — The Parable of the importunate Widow
and unjust Judge. The Elect heard.

" 1. And he spake a parable unto them to this
end, that men ought always to pray, and not to
faint ;"

Prayer is a duty properly belonging to such as are
poor and needy ; and sighing is the portion of the
miserable. They must be continual in this life, be-
cause we are continually oppressed with wants and
miseries. The tempter is never weary in assaulting
us ; let us never grow weary in resisting him with the
arms of prayer. To pray always, and to speak but
little, is one of the paradoxes of the gospel : this
duty requires little of the tongue, much of the heart.
A man may be justly said always to pray, when he
has God always present to his mind, and always de-
sires him ; whether he do it standing or kneeling, in
rest or labour, in grief or joy.

6 ST. LUKE.

" 2. Saving, There was in a city a judge, which
feared not God, neither regarded man:"

If perseverance in prayer triumph over the most
obstinate wickedness of an unjust judge, can we have
the least apprehension that our prayers will not pre-
vail with God, who is goodness itself? He must
needs be very desirous to grant, who so readily in-
spires men with the confidence to ask. No hard-
heartedness whatever is more inflexible than that of
an unjust judge; and yet a poor widow overcomes it
by her perseverance. What then must necessarily
be the success, when the Spirit of God prays to him
in his saints ?

" 3. And there was a widow in that city; and she
came unto him, saying, Avenge me of mine adver-
sary."

The portion of Christian widows consists in afflic-
tion and the cross, in constancy and perseverance in
prayer. It is from such a widow that we must learn
to pray well, because she is an emblem of the church,
and of every soul which has no hope but in God. A
widow who is desolate and oppressed, without rela-
tions, friends, substance, and support; what other re-
fuge can she have but humble prayer, assiduous sup-
plication, and importunate perseverance? Such is
my soul in thy sight, O my God ! and even more
desolate, since it has not even the power to pray unto
thee, unless thou vouchsafest to bestow it on me as
a gift and an alms.

'* 4. And he would not for a while: but afterward
he said within himself, Though I fear not God, nor
regard man; 5. Yet because this widow troubleth
me, I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming
she weary me."

CHAPTER XVIII. 7

How many actions, which appear good, have
neither the love of God, nor that of our neighbour,
but only self-love, for their motive and principle !
What other reward can we expect for such, except
that which is due to self-love? God, by his infinite
love and wisdom, makes these actions subservient to
his designs concerning his elect, and to the comfort
and consolation of the oppressed. Whenever he
pleases, he causes justice to be done by the most un-
just judges, whose heart is in his hand, as well as that
of the most upright. It is in him, therefore, that we
must put our trust and confidence, but without neglect-
ing human means. But we are apt too frequently to
ascribe all the glory of the success to these means,
and to forget Him who alone made them useful and
effectual.

" 6. And the Lord said, Hear what the unjust
judge saith."

We may, after the example of our Lord, make a
good use even of the worst examples. Every thing
serves to display the justice and goodness of God, by
way either of conformity or opposition, either as lines
which form the resemblance thereof, or as shadows
which heighten the lustre and liveliness of the col-
ours. Faith has the art of changing poison into a
safe remedy, and the most venomous herbs into whole-
some food.

" 7. And shall not God avenge his own elect,
which cry day and night unto him, though he bear
long with them ?"

To sigh and pray is the portion of the elect in this
life. God hears them sooner or later, in one man-
ner or another; either delivering them at present, or

8 ST. LUKE.

making their afflictions and oppressions instrumental
to the good of the church, and to the increase of
their glory and happiness in the world to come.
Those who have no notion of any other happiness or
misery hut in this life, have likewise no notion of any
deliverance but the present; but those who count
them as nothing, triumph, by the power of hope, over
the very triumphs of the wicked. To pray as one of
the elect, it is necessary, 1. That our prayer be like
a cry, by its strength, fervency, and elevation towards
God. 2. That it be persevering and continual. —
Neither the night, nor sleep, interrupts the prayer of
the elect, because their heart watches by the dispo-
sitions in which sleep seizes them; and because even
their body, whilst under it, still preserves mortifica-
tion and humility, which speak to God in silence, and
are always heard.

" 8. I tell you that he will avenge them speedily.
Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall he
find faith on the earth ?"

The delusion under which the rich, and those who
place their happiness in this world lie, consists in
this, That they reckon upon a long life, and do not
consider that even the longest is but a shadow which
passes away. A double error this, from which faith
secures the elect, by convincing them, on the word of
Christ, that not only life, but even all ages put to-
gether, are but a short time. All manner of good
accompanies a lively faith ; when this is wanting,
every thing else is so. Vouchsafe, Lord, to give me
such a faith as thou wouldst find in me at thy coming ;
and grant that it may be in me the source of a true
confidence and a persevering prayer.

CHAPTER XVIII. 9

Sect. II. — The Parable of the Pharisee and the
Publican. Christian childhood.

" 9. % And he spake this parable unto certain
which trusted in themselves that they were righteous,
and despised others :"

There are two infallible marks by which the true
devotion may be discerned from the false. The first
is, when a man relies only upon the mercy of God
and the grace of Christ, being fully persuaded, that,
without this grace, he has in himself nothing but an
inclination to evil, and an utter inability to do good.
The second is, when he concerns himself wholly
about his own sins and miseries ; and when the more
he beholds in others, the more he fears in himself.
We never despise others, but when we do not know
ourselves. Nothing is more contrary to humility,
and by consequence to true piety, than despising
our neighbour.

" 10. Two men went up into the temple to pray;
the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican."

To judge of these two men by their profession,
who would not have chose to have the heart of the
Pharisee, rather than that of the publican ? But
God judges quite otherwise in this case. Let us
learn not to judge of others at all, since in order to
judge well it is necessary to know the heart. A
man may be corrupted in a holy state or profession ;
he may be sanctified in one which is very common
and ordinary. It is the heart, and not the habit,
which renders us the servants of God.

" 11. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with
himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other

A3

10 ST. LUKE.

men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as
this publican."

This prayer, so full of ostentation, pride, pre-
sumption, and vain confidence in his own merits, is
very agreeable to the character of a Pharisee. Let
us take great care that we have not the spirit and
heart of such a person, either in whole or in part.
In prayer, nothing is better than thanksgiving, pro-
vided it be very humble and Christian, and not to
boast of the advantages we possess, but to pay homage
for them to him from whom we have received them.
He who knows that piety does not consist only in
abstaining from gross sins, and performing the ex-
ternal part of some virtues, never thanks God for
what he has received, without humbling himself for
his pride, which may corrupt the divine gifts in him,
and trembling with fear lest he have nothing but the
shadow and outward appearance of virtue. When
a man compares himself with such as are notoriously
wicked, he may think himself a saint : but he will
always find himself criminal, when he compares him-
self with the saints.

" 12. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all
that I possess."

Exemption from gross faults, and the external per-
formance of good works, are a source of pride and
complacency in those who have not laid a foundation
of humility. Bodily mortification and liberality in
alms are apt to puff men up, and do sometimes cause
more hurt and prejudice to a soul, than it would re-
ceive either from luxury or avarice. A fault which
truly humbles, is more useful and profitable than a
virtue which puffs up with pride; because a false

CHAPTER XVIII. 1 1

virtue is a veil which hides our vices from us. It is
a very miserable condition in which we are here be-
low, where we have as much to do to secure ourselves
from the sight which the devil gives us of our own
goodness, as from the evil which he earnestly endea-
vours to put into our hearts.

" 13. And the publican, standing afar off, would
not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but
smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to
me a sinner."

My God, how different are the motions of grace
from those of corrupt nature ! Grace changes the
sinner's pride into a salutary confusion, inspires him
with a holy indignation against himself, and inclines
him to make a sincere confession of his sins, and to
offer up humble, fervent, and continual prayer. That
which a true penitent thinks himself to be in the
sight of God, the same he is willing to appear in the
sight of men, namely, the last of all. He is tho-
roughly sensible how much sin has degraded him ;
and he lays claim to nothing but a right to perform
penance, and to humble himself. He approaches
God by standing afar off, out of respect and reve-
rence; he attracts his eyes, by not presuming to lift
up so much as his own unto heaven; by not sparing
himself, he, in some measure, deserves that God
should spare him ; and by acknowledging his own
misery, he obtains mercy.

"14. I tell you, This man went down to his
house justified rather than the other : for every one
that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that
humbleth himself shall be exalted."

Pride destroys all good works in the sight of God:

12 ST. LUKE.

humility covers all manner of sins, and is to a sinner
instead of all virtues. The proud prayer of a pre-
tender to righteousness is so far from blotting out
sin, that it is itself turned into sin. Humiliation is
the way to glory, because it is the mark of a sincere
conversion : pride is the distinguishing character of
an impenitent heart. Lord, form in me such a heart
as thou wilt crown ; give me that humility which
thou wilt exalt !

" 15. % And they brought unto him also infants,
that he would touch them : but when his disciples
saw it, they rebuked them."

It is not sufficient, to pray either with the impor-
tunity and perseverance of a poor widow who sues
for justice, or with the humility and dejection of the
publican ; we must do it likewise with the simplicity,
and often with the silence, of an infant. A man
must not pretend to play the orator in his addresses
to God — He is not to be persuaded by human ar-
guments, or to be gained by eloquence. Nothing
is more persuasive with him than a plain and simple
faith, nothing more eloquent than an humble silence.
The imperfection of charity and knowledge in this
present life, exposes the humble and the little ones
to suffer frequent repulses even from good men ; but
they have nothing of this nature to fear when they
present themselves before God, who rejects none but
those who are great in their own eyes.

" 16. But Jesus called them unto him, and said,
Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid
them not : for of such is the kingdom of God."

The perseverance of the prayer of the righteous
is victorious over temptation ; the humility of the

CHAPTER XVIII. 13

prayer of penitents obtains mercy ; but the simplicity
of the saints renders them worthy of a kind of fami-
liarity with God, to have a particular and intimate
union with him, to be capable of being always in his
presence, to be his favourites, and to enter even at
present, as it were, into the possession of his king-
dom. The prayer of the just, and that of the peni-
tent, are for all those who are in this life : but the
most sublime prayer, the prayer of intimate union,
familiarity, and contemplation, is only for those among
the saints whom God particularly calls thereto. To
be ambitious of exalting ourselves to this honour, is
not the property of children, who suffer themselves
to be led and carried thereto; but it is the property
of presumptuous persons, who are full of their own
strength and merit. How desirable are simplicity,
innocence, and humility of heart, since they obtain
so free an access to Jesus Christ, and give a right to
the kingdom of heaven !

" 17. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not
receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in
no wise enter therein. "

It is necessary, beyond expression, to bring along
with us the simplicity and docility of a child, when
we set ourselves to read or meditate upon the truths
of the gospel, which is the treasure of Christian
prayer. It is properly and principally in this duty
of prayer that God offers his kingdom to us, by
causing us therein to see the laws of it, and by dis-
covering to us the paths of salvation, and the ways
of perfection. The proud, the great, and the wits
of the age, generally reject this kingdom, whilst
children receive it : because, wherever either reason

14 ST. LUKE.

or the love of earthly things prevails, men are not in
a disposition to receive the kingdom of God, which
is the kingdom of faith, and contains only such good
things as are invisible.

Sect. III. — The rich Man follows not Christ. The
Danger of Riches.

" 18. f And a certain ruler asked him, saying,
Good Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"

The thoughts of eternal life are very rare in a
young man of quality. Happy is he to whom God
vouchsafes to give them ! Men ought, after the
example of this person, to be fully persuaded that
they cannot be saved without doing something; that
the first step is, to get themselves instructed in the
way to heaven ; and that, in order to this, they must
seek after an understanding master and a virtuous
guide. Few give themselves the trouble to take
these necessary steps, because there are very few who
think seriously how they may be saved. If faith
be necessary even to a poor man's believing another
life, how much more is it so to a great and rich per-
son, who has nothing which gives him any distaste
towards this, and who wants nothing which can con-
tribute to the gratification of his senses !

" 19. And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou
me good? none is good, save one, that is, God."

It is not sufficient to have a guide to show us the
way; we must likewise have strength to walk there-
in, and none but God can give it us. This whole
strength consists in the goodness of the heart ; and
no heart can be good but by partaking of the su-
preme goodness. A good director of the conscience

CHAPTER XVIII. 15

ought to take care, after the example of Christ the
good master, to instruct those concerning the neces-
sity of God's grace, who, through the heat of good
desires, are apt to believe that they have need of
nothing but only to learn what they ought to do.
God alone is good, and the fountain of all goodness;
every man is corrupt, and stands in need of a restorer
to cause him both to will and to do that which is
good.

" 20. Thou knowest the commandments, Do not
commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not
bear false witness, Honour thy father and thy mo-
ther."

Christ seems to forget the interests of God, that
he may recommend those of our neighbour. But
it sufficiently showed our duty towards God, to say
that he is God, alone supremely good, and conse-
quently alone worthy to be supremely loved and
adored. Our neighbour belongs to God; and what-
ever he possesses is an effusion and participation of
the being and goodness of God. We therefore
offend him, whenever we make any attempt upon the
wife, life, goods, or reputation of our neighbour. It
is an impiety for a man not to honour his father
and mother : because it is no other than to dishonour
the power, authority, and goodness of God, of which
they are the channels, the instruments, and the em-
blems. God is the principle or first cause of our
being, life, and of all the other natural gifts which
we enjoy; but it is by and in our parents that he is
so, and it is in them that he would receive from us
the homage due for all those things.

" 21. And he said, All these have I kept from
my youth up."

16 ST. LUKE.

Such a one thinks he has done all, who has not
yet begun. A man never keeps the law of God as
he ought, but only when he keeps it upon a principle
of love towards God himself, and through a faithful
adherence to his will : and this is a matter concern-
ing which it is very dangerous to flatter ourselves.
It is not the work of the hands which we must con-
sider, but the disposition of the heart; and who knows
that?

" 22. Now, when Jesus heard these things, he
said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing; sell all
that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and
thou shalt have treasure in heaven : and come, follow
me.

Two things are necessary to salvation : — 1. To
observe the general law which is common to all. 2.
To be faithful in performing that which God requires
of every one in particular. — To distribute all to the
poor, in order to follow Christ in his state of poverty,
is only a counsel of perfection. But if God require
it, it is a precept of necessity, to obey which we
must always be in a readiness and disposition : no-
thing being more necessary than to obey God, and
to prefer his will before all things. Christ cannot
own those for his disciples who are fond of perishing
treasures. They are a weight too heavy for a man,
who carries it in his heart, to be able to follow Christ.
To leave our wealth to rich relations, is to discharge
ourselves indeed of it, but it is not to give it to God.
It is to the poor that we must entrust it, if we de-
sire to have treasure in heaven.

"23. And when he heard this, he was very sor-
rowful : for he was very rich."

CHAPTER XVIII. 17

We are not fully sensible of the fondness which
we have for earthly things, any other way than by
the difficulty which we find in parting with them,
and by the grief and sorrow which we undergo in
losing them. It is a certain sign that virtue is not
solid and substantial, when it sinks under the first
trial. There are abundance of persons who lack but
one thing, and who are detained in the way by one
single affection which they cannot surmount. We
have great reason to fear lest that, which at the be-
ginning was only an obstacle to perfection, should
in the end prove an obstacle to salvation.

" 24. And when Jesus saw that he was very sor-
rowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have
riches enter into the kingdom of God !"

Where there is abundance of riches, there is gene-
rally abundance of worldly love; and worldly love
cannot enter into the kingdom of charity. If we
will not, as to this truth, refer ourselves to the judg-
ment of Him who is himself the way to heaven, and
the door of salvation, we are resolved blindly to cast
ourselves headlong into destruction. If salvation be
so marvellously difficult to such as have great riches,
even lawfully acquired, what must it be to those who
love and pursue them with eagerness and passion,
who heap them up by all sorts of methods, and whose
hearts are entirely taken up and possessed by them!

** 25. For it is easier for a camel to go through
a needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the
kingdom of God."

Who would believe this truth, if the Son of God
himself did not deliver it ? It is very hard and diffi-
cult to those who put their trust in earthly treasures;

18 ST. LUKE.

but tli is difficulty proceeds from their heart, not from
the truth. To forbid men the love of riches, what is
it but to take away toys from children, a sword from
a madman, and from worldly desires that which feeds
and nourishes them ? A rich man is not properly one
who only possesses great wealth, but one who is pos-
sessed thereby; not one who distributes it amongst
the poor, as being only a steward, but one who
makes it the instrument of his passions, and places
his supreme good and happiness therein.

" 26. And they that heard it said, Who then
can be saved ?"

There are but few who are at all terrified by this
truth, because the generality of the rich stop their
ears that they may not hear it. Since the number
of the poor is, without comparison, always greater
than that of the rich, why should these men say,
fi Who then can be saved?" Is it not because there
are very few who do not desire and love riches, and
who are not rich at least in heart ?

" 27. And he said, The things which are im-
possible with men are possible with God."

The salvation of a rich man is a double miracle,
and a thing which is more rare and uncommon than
we imagine. Lest despair should throw us into sloth
and idleness, Christ promises, that the things which,
by reason of our own weakness, are impossible to us,
shall become possible by the power of God. If it
be impossible for a rich man to sit loose to his riches,
it is so only because he continues wilfully under his
weakness, and will not have recourse to Him who
admonishes him, by his commandment, to do that
which he is able, and to beg that which he is not,

CHAPTER XVIII. 19

and who confers his grace upon men in order to make
them able.

" 28. f Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all,
and followed thee."

A man may be rich without riches : he may leave
all, without having ever possessed any thing. It is
by the heart that we cleave to earthly possessions :
it is by renouncing them in our heart that we dis-
engage ourselves from them. We leave them, when
we cease to desire them, and shut our hearts against
all worldly hopes; because we possess them more by
desire, hope, and love, than by possession itself. W e
do not properly leave or forsake any thing, but only
when we do it by the Spirit, and for the sake of
Christ, and in order to follow him by imitating his
example: because otherwise, whatever our hands let
go, is retained by the desire of our hearts.

" 29. And he said unto them, Verily I say unto
you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents,
or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of
God's sake, 30. Who shall not receive manifold
more in this present time, and in the world to come
life everlasting."

God finds means to recompense, even in this life,
Christian virtue, which engages a man to forsake
all, either to preserve his fidelity to the faith and the
truth, or to follow Christ in the way of perfection.
How rich in the sight of God is the apostolical
poverty of a minister of Christ, who renounces all
hopes of any thing in this world, that he may dedi-
cate himself to the salvation of souls, and serve Jesus
Christ in a state oF poverty ! It is the work of God
alone, to cause a man under an extreme poverty, and

20 ST. LUKE.

a total destitution of all things, to find satisfaction,
joy, consolation, and true peace, while the rich of
the world find nothing in their false treasures but an
inexhaustible source of fears, troubles, vexations, dis-
quiets, and frequently of all sorts of miseries. No-
thincr affords greater matter of comfort to a person
deprived of every thing for the sake of God, than to
see his paternal care exert itself on every occasion,
and prevent all his wants, at the same time conceal-
ing itself under human means. That which a man
finds again in Christian charity, which is, as it were,
the stock of Providence, is something very different
from that which he would find in his own. It be-
comes a hundred-fold increase by the blessing which
God sheds upon it — but who knows the value thereof?

Sect. IV. — The Passion foretold, but not under-
stood.

" 31. % Then he took unto him the twelve, and
said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and
all things that are written by the prophets concern-
ing the Son of man shall be accomplished. "

We do not know, as Christ did, the time of our
sacrifice, but we know very well that we are con-
tinually advancing towards that moment, that possibly
it is at no great distance; and that it is much more
necessary for us than it was for him, to think se-
riously of it, and to prepare ourselves for it. Christ
thinks with pleasure on the accomplishment of his
Father's orders concerning him, how rigorous soever
they are ; and we, for our parts, either think with
trouble and anxiety concerning death, which will
happen at the time and in the manner appointed by

CHAPTER XVIII. 21

God, or else use our utmost endeavours not to think
of it at all.

" 32. For he shall be delivered unto the Gen-
tiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated,
and spitted on :"

The treachery, humiliations, pains, and ignominies,
which preceded the death of Christ, admonish us to
prepare ourselves for our own by mortification and
humility. Nothing but a forgetfulness of this sacri-
fice can induce a man to give himself up to pleasures,
at a time when he is upon the very point of appear-
ing before his Judge. And who can pretend to say
that he is not ?

" 33. And they shall scourge him, and put him
to death ; and the third day he shall rise again.',

Nothing is so capable of giving us comfort, and
fortifying our weakness against the fear of painful
diseases, and the dread of death, as the remembrance
of the sufferings, death, and resurrection of Jesus
Christ. His sufferings sweeten and sanctify ours ;
his death changes the punishment of a criminal into
a sacrifice of atonement; and his resurrection is the
pattern and principle of a new and eternal life for all
those who die in the spirit of mortification, and with
submission to the justice of God.

"34. And they understood none of these things:
and this saying was hid from them, neither knew
they the things which were spoken."

The mind of man is naturally shut against the
knowledge of the cross, of sufferings, and of death ;
and especially of those of a God. As criminal as
man is, and how worthy soever he is of death, yet
nothing but daily experience can force him to believe

22 ST. LUKE.

that he must die: how then without faith should
he ever believe this of him who is innocence itself?
Open, Lord, our understandings to these truths
which are so necessary ; and cause our hearts to
submit themselves thereto with an humble love.

Sect. V. — The blind Man healed.

" 35. % And it came to pass, that as he was
come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by
the way-side begging :"

Let us take care to contemplate ourselves in this
emblem of the blindness, ignorance, misery, and po-
verty, into which man is cast by sin, with respect to
heavenly things. What is the sight of corporeal
things, of which the blind are deprived, but only a
source of temptations, snares, and sins? But not
to know ourselves to be blind as to the things of
salvation, and to want those eyes which alone can
discern the truth, O God, what blindness is this !
and yet scarce any one is sensible of it, and very
few desire to be cured.

" 36. And hearing the multitude pass by, he
asked what it meant."

The cure of a sinner is sometimes linked to, and
depends upon, a first motion which seems natural,
upon curiosity or mere chance; and yet it is really
no other than a gift of God who intends to heal him.
Whenever we earnestly desire to be cured of any
bodily disease, we are mindful of every thing, we
neglect nothing, and we ask advice of people upon
the very least probability of finding what we seek.
Why then, O my God, should we be so stupid and
sluggish with respect to those things which may
contribute to the cure of our souls?

CHAPTER XVIII. 23

ie 37. And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth
passeth by."

Happy news for this poor blind man : but more
happy still for the sinner, that the Author of light
and the sovereign Physician is to be found and met
with in his way. Jesus passes in this life for the
sake of sinners ; because they themselves pass away,
and must therefore make use of time whilst they
have it. The opportunities of salvation are contin-
ually passing away; it is the greatest folly imaginable
to let them slip by our delays : and we are far from
doing it, when the cure of our bodies is the thing in
question.

" 38. And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of
David, have mercy on me."

There is no occasion to move this blind man to
cry out, the love of sight is a sufficient motive. He
who does not pray, desires nothing: a strong desire
either causes a man to pray much, or is itself a fer-
vent prayer. We may judge of our heart by our
prayer, without any fear of deceiving ourselves.
We are certainly insensible of our spiritual diseases,
when we do not find ourselves inclined and moved to
pray: and we are blind to our miseries, when we do
not seek at all to obtain mercy.

M 39. And they which went before rebuked him,
that he should hold his peace : but he cried so much
the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me."
Happy is that person whom nothing can hinder
from crying out incessantly after his deliverer ! We
sometimes condemn persons for praying too long or
too often ; not perceiving that it is God who con-
strains them thus to pray, by opening and fixing

24- ST. LUKE.

their eyes upon their own wants and failings, and
upon the blessings which they wait for, and by giving
them a lively sense of their misery, and an ardent
thirst after righteousness.

" 40. And Jesus stood, and commanded him to
be brought unto him : and when he was come near,
he asked him,"

The prayer of faith renders Christ attentive to
our miseries. It is the fruit of perseverance and
earnestness in prayer, to engage at length the good-
ness of God to cast his eyes upon us. When we
are once got above the censures of the world, and
resolve in good earnest to labour after conversion,
God declares himself in favour of us, and causes us
to come near unto him. Let the sinner be then
transported with joy, for his recovery draws nigh.

"41. Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do
unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive
my sight."

WTe cannot too often pray for the bright and ac-
tive light of faith. Men prefer the light of the day,
an advantage common to them with flies, before all
earthly riches; no part of which is desired by this
blind man : and yet the generality prefer even these
perishing riches to the light of faith, and to that in-
finite source of light which is promised us in heaven.
How corrupt is reason ! How blind a judge is
sense ! How little does carnal man know how to
choose his own happiness !

" 42. And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight :
thy faith hath saved thee."

I have eyes and see not; neither am I worthy to
see : but vouchsafe, O Lord, only to say to my soul,

CHAPTER XVIII. 2b

«;

Receive thy sight," and it will presently perceive
that thou art its God, that thou alone art worthy to
be served, and that all other things are but vanity
and vexation of spirit. God, by the sole motion of
his will, enlightens and heals the soul as well as the
body : he commands, and is immediately obeyed.
Faith is properly ours, because we believe by an act
of our will: and yet it is the gift of God, because it
is he who worketh in us both the will to believe, and
the act of believiug itself. He first gives us faith
to pray, and then grants all the rest to prayer.

" 43. And immediately he received his sight, and
followed him, glorifying God. And all the people,
when they saw it, gave praise unto God."

Love follows faith. The mind enlightened of
God, carries the heart toward him. Happy is that
blind person, to whom God gives not only eyes to
know him, but likewise feet to follow, a tongue to
praise, and a heart to love him ! To follow Christ,
is to imitate him, and to lead such a life as is answer-
able to what he has done to enlighten our minds.
The glory which we ought to render him, consists
not in words, but in works. A true conversion,
which no way contradicts itself, but is followed by
an edifying life, makes known the power and majesty
of God, in a more eminent manner than the greatest
external miracles.

Vol. III. B 57

26 ST. LUKE.

CHAPTER XIX.

Sect. I. — Zaccheiis.

" 1. And Jesus entered and passed through Jeri-
cho. 2. And, behold, there was a man named
Zaccheus, which was the chief among the publicans,
and he was rich."

Jesus shows us the truth of his word by plain and
visible effects: in the rich man, abandoned to the
love of his wealth, (chap, xviii.) how difficult the
salvation of the rich is; in Zaccheus, how easy it is
by the assistance of God's grace. Men have double
chains to break when they are rich, and are likewise
in a post, wherein they grow every day richer, as
when they have the management of the public trea-
sure. The public good, perhaps, requires that a man
should continue in his place ; but if his eternal sal-
vation require that he should leave it, is there the
least room for deliberation ! Another person besides
thee may take upon him the care of the public re-
venues; but none but thou thyself can save thy own
soul. '

" 3. And he sought to see Jesus* who he was;
and could not for the press, because he was little of
stature." [* Fr. To know him.]

A desire to know spiritual and invisible riches, is
an extraordinary grace in a person who abounds in
earthlv. The first seed of salvation for such a man
is, to desire to know his Saviour: but none but he
who sowed the seed in his heart, can make it bring
forth fruit therein. There are two impediments

CHAPTER XIX. 27

which hinder the conversion of such a person, the
crowd of the world and its affairs, and the littleness
of the heart of man for the things of salvation. It
is absolutely necessary to leave this crowd, and to be
lifted up by grace, in order to endeavour earnestly
to know and follow Jesus Christ. Those great men,
considered in their public offices, civil or military, are
yet often, in respect of the business of salvation, even
less than children.

" 4. And he ran before, and climbed up into a
sycamore-tree to see him : for he was to pass that
way."

It is a great gift, and very necessary in order to a
true conversion, for a man to have a holy eagerness
to raise himself above earthly things, that he may
see and know Christ, and to surmount all the obsta-
cles which proceed from the world and from corrupt
nature. One need only be really willing to think
seriously of salvation, and to set about this work,
and all outward obstacles will appear as nothing.
They are almost all surmounted, when once we are
got above the judgments and discourses of men, which
generally stop those who are exposed to them. Had
Zaccheus considered worldly honour, his rank, his
office, and his wealth, he would never have taken
this method, which exposed him to the laughter of
the people : but then he would not have seen Christ,
and perhaps had never been saved. Men are some-
times lost, by refusing to take some certain steps,
upon which God has made their salvation to depend.

" 5. And when Jesus came to the place, he looked
up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zaccheus, make

B 2

28 ST. LUKE.

haste, and come down ; for to-day I must abide at
thy house."

Make haste, and descend, O sinner, into thy ori-
ginal nothing ; for it is in thy heart that Christ in-
tends to abide, by means of the communion, or by his
other favours; and it is by humility that the heart
is prepared to receive him. God gives men a desire
to know him ; and he goes even beyond this desire,
by giving himself to be possessed by them. His
designs concerning souls begin first to appear by the
call to conversion. This is the effect of the notice
taken of them by his mercy, by which he determined
to make his abode in those souls. He chooses of
his own accord, and without any invitation, because
his love precedes all merit, and because he shows
grace and favour to whom he pleases, and does it
with an absolute authority.

" 6. And he made haste, and came down, and
received him joyfully."

So ready and sincere an obedience, makes it evi-
dent, that Christ spoke to the heart of Zaccheus, and
had already taken possession of it. His joy shows
plainly, that he knew the good which he possessed,
that he was far from thinking himself worthy of it,
and that he was not at all solicitous what judgment
the scribes and Pharisees would pass upon this mat-
ter. The sincerity of our desires is known by our
works. In receiving the poor, or giving them suffi-
cient to procure themselves lodging, we imitate the
example of Zaccheus, and receive Jesus Christ him-
self: but then we must, like him, do this joyfully,
and with love.

" 7. And when they saw it, they all murmured,

CHAPTER XIX. 29

saying, That he was gone to be guest with a man
that is a sinner."

The ways of God's mercy towards sinners are
hid from carnal men, as well as his designs in the
incarnation of his Son. Alas ! who can say, that
there does not happen to himself somewhat like that
which we here see in these blind persons, who blame
our blessed Saviour for that very thing which ought
to render him the more amiable; who undertake to
judge of the heart, which is altogether unknown to
them ; and who do not in the least perceive the
change of that of Zaccheus in his humility, obedience,
and his whole behaviour? It is thy work alone, O
Jesus, to search into sinners, even to the very bottom
of their hearts; and without this remedy, what would
become of them ?

" 8. And Zaccheus stood, and said unto the Lord,
Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the
poor ; and if I have taken any thing from any man
by false accusation, I restore him four-fold."

True conversion shows itself by the change of life.
We cannot possibly secure our salvation, without
making satisfaction to men by an exact restitution,
rather exceeding than deficient ; and without making
satisfaction likewise to God, as far as we are able,
by alms proportioned, in some measure, to our sub-
stance and our sins. A true peniteut regards not
the censures of the world ; and vindicates himself
only by his works. He leaves his justification to
him who knows his heart; and has no other thought
but to condemn himself. The judgment which, of
his own accord, this penitent passes against himself,
will condemn those hard and impenitent hearts, who

30 ST. LUKE.

reject all the remedies which are offered them, and
who will do nothing to make the least atonement for
their crimes.

" 9. And Jesus said unto him, This day is sal-
vation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a
son of Abraham."

Men sometimes despise a poor sinner; and at the
same time he is an elect of God, a child of promise,
an Israelite indeed, and an heir of the blessings pro-
mised in a figure to Abraham. Those whom God
has chosen from all eternity to salvation, cannot fail
of receiving grace. Grant, Lord, that a lively faith,
and a life of faith, may make us true children of
Abraham, and give us a right to expect his inheri-
tance.

" ]0. For the Son of man is come to seek and to
save that which was lost."

These are comfortable words for sinners. How
much soever they are gone astray, let them not de-
spair, since no less a person than God is come to
seek them. What progress soever the righteous
have made, let them not imagine that they have no
longer any occasion of being sought. They have
still their wanderings as well as sinners; and always
carry in their own hearts an evil principle which leads
them out of the way. Lord, seek in me that which
is gone astray ; save that which is lost ; and preserve
that which thou hast already found.

Sect. II. — The Parable of the ten Pounds.

" 11. 11 And as they heard these things, he added,
and spake a parable, because he was nigh to Jeru-
salem, and because they thought that the kingdom
of God should immediately appear."

CHAPTER XIX. 31

These words so full of comfort and consolation,
give none at all to these worldly souls, in whom they
only raise a desire and expectation of a present de-
liverance and a temporal kingdom. Men frequently
render the most sacred truths altogether fruitless and
ineffectual as to themselves; because their hearts
being filled with the things of this world, can neither
relish nor comprehend those of the other- The
kingdom of God is indeed about to appear imme-
diately; but it is the kingdom of a God crucified, and
reigning upon the cross, in order to reign by the cross
in our hearts.

" 12. He said therefore, A certain nobleman went
into a far country to receive for himself* a king-
dom, and to return." [* Fr. Take possession of.]

Christ is truly a person of great birth, being born
the Son of God from all eternity, and the son of
David according to the flesh. He concealed the
greatness of his first birth, and regarded not that of
his second, to confound the vanity of men, and to
teach them humility. The glory of which he is
gone to take possession, is a country far remote
from the low condition of man : it is the life of hea-
ven, which differs vastly from that of earth: it is a
state of power and immortality, which bears no re-
semblance with this state of weakness. Let us com-
fort ourselves; he will certainly return to conduct us
thither.

" 13. And he called his ten servants, and deli-
vered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy
till I come."

The belief of the return and second coming* of
Christ, and the uncertainty under which he has left

32 ST. LUKE.

us as to the time of his coming, ought to awaken us
from our slumber. We have but very little faith,
if we are not continually preparing ourselves against
his return, by making a good use of the gifts of
God. There is no person whatever, who has not
some of these gifts to improve. The common sort
of Christians have the knowledge of God and Christ,
the call to the true church, instructions, and many
other graces : besides these gifts, the ministers of
the church ought to improve whatever they have
received for the salvation of others. How few of
them are there who take care to employ their talent,
and to employ it well ! They either lose it by
vanity, or let it lie useless through sloth.

" 14. But his citizens hated him, and sent a mes-
sage after him, saying, We will not have this man
to reign over us."

This is no more than a mere shadow of the re-
bellion of a sinner against his God. Whoever will
not have Jesus Christ to reign over him, cannot pos-
sibly avoid being a slave to sin under the dominion
of the devil. None but a fool or a madman would
speak as these citizens do : and yet we say the very
same thing by our works, when we do not live ac-
cording to the- law of Christ. Whoever blindly
follows the maxims of the world, which is an enemy
to Christ, declares plainly enough, by so doing, that
he disclaims the authority and government of Christ.
Preserve in me, O Lord, the will which thou hast
vouchsafed to give me, never to have any other king
over my heart besides thyself.

" 15. And it came to pass, that, when he was re-
turned, having received the kingdom, then he com-

CHAPTER XIX. 33

manded these servants to be called unto him, to whom
he had given the money, that he might know how
much every man had gained by trading."

How great will the sinner's despair be, when he
must give an account of the employment of his time,
and of the use of his understanding, will, and senses,
of all his substance, of all the graces he has received,
and even of the blood of Jesus Christ ! The account
which pastors mujst give, will be, without comparison,
much more dreadful. Souls are the treasure of Christ,
it is in these that he desires to grow rich. A pastor
who neglects them, and does not employ his ministry
and authority, his time and talents, his industry and
labours, to gain them for God, alas ! what answer will
he be able to make to him who has entrusted them
to his care? Lord, open the eyes, and touch the
heart of those unfaithful servants, who do nothing in
thy church but scandalize and ruin souls.

" 16. Then came the first, saying, Lord, thy
pound hath gained ten pounds."

How great will be the consolation of the just man,
whose conscience shall give testimony of his fidelity
at the hour of death ! What joy will a good pastor
experience, who has preserved and increased the flock
of Christ, and sacrificed himself to gain over souls
to him ! Such a one appears with the greater con-
fidence, because he ascribes nothing to himself, but
attributes all to grace. It is the Lord's gift, and not
the servant's industry, which produces this gain and
advantage; and it is even a part of this gain, to ren-
der to God all the glory of his gifts.

u 17. And he said unto him, Weil, thou good

b3

Si ST. LUKE.

servant: because thou hast been faithful in a very
little, have thou authority over ten cities."

God praises and rewards his own gifts, in praising
and rewarding the goodness and faithfulness of his
servants. The only true and advantageous praise
is that which God will give at the last day : let us
be very careful not to anticipate that time, by desir-
ing the praise of men, which is so deceitful, false, and
dangerous. The gifts which God bestows on men
in this life, are not to be compared with those of the
world to come. Our virtues are in themselves but
a small and inconsiderable matter; and God, in re-
warding them, has more regard to his own mercy,
than to their worth and value.

" 18. And the second came, saying, Lord, thy
pound hath gained five pounds. 19. And he said
likewise to him, Be thou also over five cities."

Fidelity has several degrees, as talents are differ-
ent, and not one shall lose its reward, from him
whose justice and goodness are equally infinite.
Fidelity is the thing which God requires : it is this
which makes the good servant, it is this which makes
all his merit in the sight of God. The honour,
riches, power, and authority of a temporal govern-
ment, are but a faint shadow and resemblance of
that which he shall receive at the hands of God,
who has faithfully managed and improved the wealth
of his sovereign Master. It is to this advancement
and greatness, that all Christian ambition ought to
tend.

" 20. And another came, saying, Lord, behold,
here is thy pound, which I have kept laid up in a
napkin :"

CHAPTER XIX. 35

This negligent and slothful servant ought to
make all pastors and clergymen tremble, who ima-
gine that they lead an innocent life, if they do but
avoid the grosser sins, and only lead an easy and
quiet life in idleness and indolence. In a priest, it
is a great evil not to do any good. Not to use the
gifts of God, is to abuse them. He loses them,
who does not make them serviceable to the good of
the church. Rest is a crime, in one who is called
to a laborious life; and we cannot live to ourselves
alone, when we belong to the church.

"21. For I feared thee, because thou art an
austere man : thou takest up that thou layedst not
down, and reapest that thou didst not sow."

It is a strange blindness for a man to imagine
that he can justify himself by accusing God of in-
justice ! Self-love, which conducts itself in the
affairs relating to heaven, by views only of interest,
and by a servile fear, will never make any other than
mean-spirited and slothful ministers, and such as are
unconcerned for the glory of God. Love never
frames to itself any idea of God, which is unworthy
of his goodness and mercy ; and it is always ready to
hope in him, and to labour for him. Servile fear
represents God to itself no otherwise than as a hard,
austere, imperious, and unjust Master ; and this it
does to palliate its own idleness, to have some pre-
tence to murmur against him, and to screen itself
from his justice.

" 22. And he saith unto him, Out of thine own
mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou
knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I
laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow :

36 ST. LUKE.

23. Wherefore then gavest not thou my money into
the bank, that at my coming I might have required
mine own with usury?"

The sinner, accused by his own conscience, and
confounded by his own wickedness, will be able at
death and judgment to find no excuse, but such as
will serve only to increase his condemnation. Self-
love forms to itself a God, according to its own fancy,
and the humour of its different passions : sometimes,
such a one as is mild and indulgent without rule or
measure; at other times, one who is excessively
rigorous and severe. It is only by the word and
dispensations of God, that we can frame a true no-
tion of his justice and his mercy. A false notion of
his mercy encourages abundance of bad Christians in
the neglect of their salvation, and a forgetfulness of
their duty : a false notion of his justice and severity,
in respect of those punishments which he will inflict
for the faults committed in the direction of souls, in-
creases idleness and sloth in a great number of minis-
ters. It is therefore of the utmost importance ima-
ginable, for a man to know God well ; and not to
judge of him any otherwise, than according to the
representation which he has been pleased to give of
himself in the Scriptures.

" 24. And he said unto them that stood by, Take
from him the pound, and give it to him that hath ten
pounds."

He who has not charity, which alone causes men
to make a good use of God's other gifts, shall be
deprived even of these. The righteous are gainers
by the loss of the wicked : the grace which one per-
son neglects to use, is frequently transferred to an-

CHAPTER XIX. 37

other. The grace of being zealous for the salva-
tion of souls, of relieving the poor, and of promoting
and advancing the works of God, is sometimes
neglected by those who are peculiarly obliged thereto
by their ministry ; and is given to inferior ministers,
to voluntary labourers, to laymen, and to devout
women.

" 25. (And they said unto him, Lord, he hath
ten pounds.)"

Nothing appears more surprising to carnal men,
than to see the holiest persons growing daily richer,
and still acquiring new virtues. It is our duty,
without the least envy, to admire the goodness of
God in heaping his mercies upon them, and causing
them to make a continual progress in fidelity. It
is his glory, to show that a soul, to which nothing
seems to be wanting, is visibly raising itself to higher
degrees of perfection, by proceeding from the obser-
vation of the ten commandments to an exact practice
of the evangelical counsels. The one is the recom-
pense of the other. Let us not admire this after a
supine and fruitless manner.

" 26. For I say unto you, That unto every one
which hath shall be given; and from him that hath
not, even that he hath shall be taken away from him."

The righteous person, being exactly faithful, in-
creases continually in charity : the wicked becomes
continually poorer and more unworthy, by the in-
crease of his sensual affection. Faith is nourished
by good vvorks, and grows stronger by the good
which it causes a man to do; it grows weak and de-
cays, from time to time, in those who live not by
faith, and who do not perform the works thereof.

38 ST. LUKE.

Grace, piety, the love of God, and a zeal for his
glory, increase in a pastor or a priest, in proportion
to his labours for the good of the church, and the
salvation of souls : every thing diminishes, and is at
last entirely lost, in those who appear the most
pious, when they neglect their ministry, and do not
labour at all in the work of God.

" 21. And those mine enemies, which would not
that I should reign over them, bring hither, and slay
them before me."

Those who will not go to Jesus Christ in order
to receive life, shall one day be brought before him
to receive the sentence of eternal death. That
which is separated in the parable, is joined in the
truth signified thereby ; a man being always an enemy
of Christ when he is a wicked servant, and a sloth-
ful, idle, and unfaithful minister. To be deprived
of all the gifts of God, of all sorts of good things,
and to lose the beatific life, that is, the sight and
love of God, in which it consists; this is a double
death, which will never have an end; and will be the
eternal portion of all those who would not that
Christ should reign here below in their hearts by
charity, but have refused to yield obedience to his
will, and to perform the duties belonging to their
state.

Sect. III. — Christ's Entry into Jerusalem.

" 28. % And when he had thus spoken, he went
before, ascending up to Jerusalem."

Christ, our head and pattern, goes before us to-
wards the cross and to the sacrifice; can we refuse to
follow him ? It is the comfort and consolation of

CHAPTER XIX. 39

his faithful ministers, who, in performing their duty,
expose themselves to all kinds of danger, to see
Jesus Christ at their head, and to fight and suffer
under his conduct, after his example, and by his
grace. Men are very willing to follow him to Jeru-
salem, there to celebrate the passover with him : but
very rarely do they follow him, so as to be willing to
be together with him the Sacrifice of the passover.
Whoever is associated to the priesthood of Christ,
ought to love all the functions thereof: of which it
is one of the principal, for a man to sacrifice himself
for the advantage of Christ's church, and for all the
designs of God his Father.

" 29. And it came to pass, when he was come nigh
to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the
mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples, 30. Say-
ing, Go ye into the village over against you ; in the
which, at your entering, ye shall find a colt tied,
whereon yet never man sat : loose him, and bring him
hither."

The office of priests and preachers is, to go to seek
those who have not yet borne the yoke of the gospel,
to assist them in breaking the bands of sin, and to
lead and conduct them to Jesus Qhrist. In order
to this, it is necessary for them to be sent by him;
mission being the source of all ecclesiastical autho-
rity, and the door by which they must enter into all
the sacred functions. God is pleased to represent
his greatest designs to us by the meanest and lowest
things; as the conversion of the nations, the framing
of his church, and the sanctification of souls bound
and held captive by sin, are represented by what
passes here. The work of God is a work of hu-

40 ST. LUKE.

mility : this virtue ought likewise to be the distin-
guishing character of the workmen.

"31. And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose
him ? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord
hath need of him."

How different are the needs of God from those of
men ! The creature has need of the Creator, the
sinner of mercy, and the sick person of the sovereign
Physician, through indigence, misery, and weakness.
God has need of the poor, the miserable, and the
sick, only to make his riches, goodness, and omni-
potence, the more evident and illustrious. Vouch-
safe, Lord, to count it thy glory to make them shine
forth in me.

" 32. And they that were sent went their way,
and found even as he had said unto them. 33. And
as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said
unto them, Why loose ye the colt? 34<. And they
said, The Lord hath need of him."

The designs of God must be accomplished, and
they are all contained in the mystery of Christ entire,
including both the head and the members. His
church is necessary to him, because she is his spouse,
his fulness, and his body ; and this body is composed
of all nations, which, through ignorance of the true
God, were become like beasts, without reason or
understanding. The easiness which these disciples
find in bringing away the colt, denotes that easiness
wherewith the almighty power of God would bring
all people into the church by the preaching of the
apostles, and that docility which grace inspires into
the most savage and untractable hearts. Remember,
Lord, that my heart is of the number of those over
which all power has been given unto thee.

CHAPTER XIX. 41

" 35. And they brought him to Jesus : and they
cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus
thereon."

That which God requires of us by these circum-
stances wherein Christ appears to the eyes of our
faith, is to carry this Saviour in our hearts and bodies ;
to be humble, teachable, and obedient to his word;
to suffer ourselves to be guided by his Spirit ; by
no means to contradict the holiness of his precepts;
to go forward with peace and meekness in his ways,
bearing the yoke of our duty; and to be always dis-
posed to follow the will of him whom we carry within
ourselves. It is not through want of power, but
through mystery, that Christ chooses to be assisted
by his apostles. He hereby teaches us, that it is
the part of his ministers to prepare souls for him, to
be workers together with him towards their sanctifi-
cation, and to serve him by their ministry, in engag-
ing them to bear the yoke of the gospel.

" 36. And as he went, they spread their clothes
in the way."

It is an instance of generosity well becoming a
Christian, to make every thing subservient to the
triumph and reign of Christ in the church. We
must, if it be necessary, strip ourselves of all, that he
may reign and triumph in our hearts. We here see
the power of Christ over the hearts of men in this
sudden and general agreement of all the people,
who, without the least unwillingness, spread their
clothes in the way, to honour Jesus Christ. But
what shall we think, when we see millions of martyrs
pour out their blood, and lay down their lives for the
glory of his name, and Christians without number

42 ST. LUKE.

renounce all things, and trample under foot honours
and riches, in order to follow him !

" 37. And when he was come nigh, even now at
the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multi-
tude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God
with a loud voice, for all the mighty works that they
had seen,"

A man is not truly a disciple of Christ, when he
is unconcerned for his glory. The progress of the
gospel in the remotest countries, the triumph of Christ
over hearts the most barbarous, and the conversion
of the most unknown people, ought to transport us
with joy if we love the kingdom of God. If the
mighty works which God has wrought publicly for
the salvation of the world, and the establishment of
the church, require a public joy, every one ought in
proportion to praise and bless God for that which he
has done in his heart, and for all the particular mer-
cies which have contributed to his salvation.

" 38. Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh
in the name of the Lord; peace in heaven, and glory
in the highest."

What joy does not a true Christian feel, when he
has reason to think that he is drawing nigh to the
heavenly Jerusalem in following Christ, and that the
perfect kingdom of God is about to appear ! How
much greater will be the joy of the blessed in that
great day of the complete triumph of Christ and his
elect ! Let us go forth to meet him by our desires ;
and let us with the saints say, " Blessed be the King
who cometh in the name of the Lord." The re-
membrance of the mysteries of Christ will be an eter-
nal subject of praise and benediction in heaven. It

CHAPTER XIX. 43

is there that peace will for ever flourish, and that we
shall fully taste the fruit1 of glory : here we have
nothing but the seed and the bud thereof.

" 39. And some of the Pharisees from among the
multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy dis-
ciples."

The praise of God is troublesome to the ears of
the world; and envy cannot hear the good which is
spoken of others. The proud, like the Pharisees,
will not have Christ to reign over them; and cannot
bear our insisting upon the kingdom of his grace.
Of what should the disciples of truth speak more
willingly than of this amiable kingdom, which is the
principle of their righteousness here on earth, and the
foundation of the hope, peace, and glory of heaven ?

" 40. And he answered and said unto them, I tell
you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones
would immediately cry out."

God makes every thing in nature pay him honour,
as he pleases; and can give even to stones a tongue
whenever he thinks fit. In vain does the world op-
pose his designs, and strive to suppress his glory
when he intends to make it manifest. God does not
leave it always in the power of carnal men to depress
his servants : whenever he thinks fit to honour them,
he very easily finds means to do it. He forms, as
often as he pleases, devout worshippers, and zealous
defenders of his glory, even out of persons who were
before as hard and insensible as the very stones.

Sect. IV. — Christ weeps over Jerusalem ; and drives
the Bayers and Sellers out of the Temple.

" 41. ^f And when he was come near, he beheld
the city, and wept over it,"

44 ST. LUKE.

Such are the grief, the compassion, and the tears
of Christ over a soul, which ruins itself by its own
wickedness. Tears very different from those of men,
who weep through weakness, passion, interest, or hy-
pocrisy. These of Christ are holy and sanctifying
tears, tears of religion and zeal for the glory of God,
and which make part of his sacrifice; they are tears
of compassion and charity towards sinners, and of
instruction and consolation to penitents. Teach us,
O Jesus, to weep as Christians and penitents, not on
the account of such good things as perish, of which
our sensual affection is deprived, nor on the account
of such evils as pass away with time; but through a
hatred of sin, the only real evil, and for the loss of
thy grace and love, the only things which are truly
good. Teach priests to weep as such over the af-
flictions of the church, for the blindness of sinners,
and from a sense of the interests of God.

" 42. Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou,
at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto
thy peace ! but now they are hid from thine eyes."

It is a matter of great importance to know the
time and ways of salvation, which slip away from us
whenever we neglect them. The greatest misfor-
tune does not consist in a man's being a sinner, but
in not knowing either his sin or the remedy thereof;
and in rejecting the saving hand of him who would
heal him by repentance. The time of performing
this is but a day ; and this is the day of the sinner :
whoever lets this opportunity pass without improv-
ing it, will see what the days of vengeance, the
great days of the Lord are. Herein lies the great
blindness of the sinner, in that he prefers the false

CHAPTER XIX. 45

peace which he finds in sin, in his passions, and in
the delights and pleasures of the present life, before
the true and substantial peace of repentance and the
cross. My God, how many are there, from whose
eyes all these mysteries of salvation are hid ; and
to whom the truths of repentance and mortification
are incomprehensible ! Let us make a good use of
the light of faith, lest it should be taken away from
us.

" 43. For the days shall come upon thee, that
thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and
compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,"

Whoever will not come within the order of God's
mercy, must inevitably fall within the order of his
justice. Those Christians who reject and crucify
Christ by their sins, will, without doubt, be punished
more severely than the Jews. Our blessed Saviour
speaks here only of the temporal punishment which
was to be inflicted on the Jews, to the end that all may
understand that this is but a figure and shadow of that
which the divine justice prepares for sinners in the
other life. My God, who can conceive the deplor-
able state and condition of a soul, delivered up to the
devil, and treated like a rebellious city, which is
abandoned to the plunder of the enemy after a long
and dreadful siege ? We cannot possibly escape the
justice of God, when once the proper time to appease
it is past. Let us therefore make haste to do it.

" 44. And shall lay thee even with the ground,
and thy children within thee; and they shall not
leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou
knewest not the time of thy visitation."

It is extremely dangerous to neglect the time of

46 ST. LUKE.

the Lord's visitation, his grace, his word, and his
chastisements. If God, hy such external punish-
ments as these, take vengeance on the Jews for their
contempt of Christ's external visitation, by his incar-
nation, preaching, miracles, and mysteries, what ought
not an unfaithful soul to fear, which he has visited
internally, and made his habitation, palace, and royal
city, by his grace and sacraments, and by the appli-
cation of the fruits of all his mysteries? Graces
and virtues are, as it were, the stones with which God
builds himself a house and a city in our heart. There
is no longer any thing of all this in hell ; no more
good thoughts or desires, which are, as it were, the

O CS 7 7 7

children of our hearts, where they are conceived and
formed by grace. Lord, let the serious considera-
tion of so great a desolation as this, excite in me a
salutary dread of losing thee, and cause me to profit
by all the visitations of thy grace and mercy.

" 45. And he went into the temple, and began
to cast out them that sold therein, and them that
bought;"

Avarice, merchandise, simony, and a mercenary
spirit in the church — these are all insupportable to
Jesus Christ. The zeal for the sanctity of the church
and the sanctification of souls, with which he ought
to be inflamed who enters into the ecclesiastical state
and ministry, is here signified unto us by the zeal of
Christ upon his entrance into the Jewish temple.
This is one of the plainest marks of a true call; be-
cause the very end of this ministry is to labour in
advancing the sanctification of God's name, and the
salvation of souls. This is the only merchandise
which is permitted them, and for which they ought
to give all that they have.

CHAPTER XIX. 47

" 46. Saying unto them, It is written, My house
is the house of prayer ; but ye have made it a den
of thieves."

A man is no better than a thief in the church,
when he does not therein honour God, nor serve
souls, by performing the acts of religion in spirit and
in truth. He who performs them only with his lips,
carelessly and negligently, robs God of that glory
which he does not pay him, deprives souls of that
assistance which they should receive from thence,
and every bodv of that edification and good example
which he owes them. Prayer is good in all places;
but there is a particular blessing which attends it
when offered to God in the house of prayer, the house
of God himself. God is present every where : but
Jesus Christ the High Priest, by whom our prayers
are to be offered up to Gocl, and the sacrifice through
the merits of which we must offer them, is present
here below, more peculiarly in the eucharist, which
is the throne of his mercy, where the miserable have
access to God.

" 47. And he taught daily in the temple."

The zeal of priests ought not only to be employed
in reproving sinners, and inveighing against disorders,
it ought likewise to excite them to instruct the people
in the truth, and inform them concerning their duties.
The fidelity of a minister of the church consists in
not being weary with doing this, after the example
of Christ, who did it daily. Can a pastor, when he
considers this, seek for rest here below ? The church
is not only a house of prayer, but also a house of
instruction : it is there that we must learn to adore
and serve God. The catholic church, of which our

48 ST. LUKE.

churches are an emblem, is not only the house of
charity, which prays therein ; and of the Holy Spirit,
who there maketh intercession in the saints with
groanings which cannot be uttered; but it is like-
wise the house of truth, which teaches there by pas-
tors lawfully sent.

" — But the chief priests, and the scribes, and the
chief of the people, sought to destroy him ;"

The reward which Christ received in this world,
for teaching the people daily, and seeking the glory
of his Father, was to endure for his sake the contra-
diction of sinners, and to be continually exposed to
the wicked designs of his enemies. Can we pretend
to claim any other here below? The conclusion of
the day is the time when the workmen receive their
wages : till then, labour and difficulties are their
portion.

" 48. And could not find what they might do :
for all the people were very attentive to hear him."

The fidelity and diligence of Christ in the exer-
cise of his ministry, even when the chief priests and
the scribes sought to destroy him, is rewarded by the
affection which the people have for his word. God,
one way or another, preserves and protects his faith-
ful ministers against their enemies, and gives them
great comfort and encouragement by opening the
people's hearts to their instructions. A true pastor
thinks nothing troublesome and grievous, when he
finds himself useful in advancing the work of God.
The proficiency of souls is his whole delight.

CHAPTER XX. 49

CHAPTER XX.

Sect. I. — By what Authority P The Baptism of
John, from whence ?

" 1. And it came to pass, that on one of those
days, as he taught the people in the temple, and
preached the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes
came upon him, with the elders, 2. And spake
unto him, saying, Tell us, by what authority doest
thou these things? or who is he that gave thee this
authority ?"

Envy and hatred have no manner of regard either
to the holiness of the place, or to the goodness of
the work, or to truth itself, when the taking away
the credit of a person who gives umbrage is the thing
in question. They leave no stone unturned to op-
press him, but employ the sacred ministry, the holy
Scripture, and the secular authority to this purpose.
The wicked, when they cannot excuse their crimes,
do what they can to ruin the authority of the pastors
who reprove them for them. The question these
men put to our blessed Saviour would have been
just, had he not anticipated and rendered it unneces-
sary by such evident proofs of his extraordinary mis-
sion. We have always a right to ask this question,
where no true miracles appear to warrant such a
mission.

" 3. And he answered and said unto them, I will
also ask you one thing ; and answer me : 4. The
baptism of John, was it from heaven, or of men ?"

Christ does neither evade the question, nor despise
Vol. III. C 51

50 ST. LUKE.

authority, by forcing these envious persons either
to discover the malice of their hearts, or to return
an answer to their own demand, by owning the au-
thority of John, who had borne witness to his divine
mission. This conduct of the Son of God can by
no means serve to justify the refusal of heretics as
to the proof of their mission : since they never
wrought any miracles, as Jesus Christ did ; since
they were never foretold by the prophets, as he was;
since they have no John for a witness; since they
reject the authority of the church which asks them
this question, a thing which Christ did not do; and
since they do not put their answer upon a just and
equitable condition, as he did.

" 5. And they reasoned with themselves, saying,
If we shall say, From heaven ; he will say, Why then
believed ye him not ?"

A minister of the church is in the most miserable
disposition which can possibly be imagined, when he
will neither acknowledge nor publish the truth, but
only so far as it is serviceable to his designs, and
suppresses it without scruple when he finds his own
condemnation therein. In vain do men endeavour
to hide and conceal their craft and malice within
themselves : God, who sees all things, can neither
be ignorant of it, nor let it go unpunished.

" 6. But and if we say, Of men ; all the people
will stone us : for they be persuaded that John was
a prophet."

Fie who forbears speaking against the truth only
through fear of men, has betraved and dishonoured
it already in his heart, and is judged at the invisible
tribunal of God. These enemies of the truth did

CHAPTER XX. 51

not deserve the honour of giving their testimony to
one who had been a martyr for it. The common
people were fully persuaded that John was a prophet,
because he had led the life, and died the death of
the prophets : but to the eyes of the learned, blinded
with envy and wickedness, all this appears as nothing.

" 7. And they answered, That they could not tell
whence it was."

A wicked person values not a lie, when he thinks
it useful to his designs. Truth can easily find the
way to reduce haughty and conceited scholars to a
necessity of owning their ignorance. These men
undertake to judge of the mission of Christ ; and yet
are forced to own that they cannot tell whence that
of John was. Men fall from one error and disorder
into another, when they are resolved, at any rate, to
persecute the truth : to be given up to lying, is a
punishment proportioned to this crime.

M 8. And Jesus said unto them, Neither tell I
you by what authority I do these things."

It is suitable to the prudence of Christ's ministers,
and to the dignity of his word, not to expose it to
the malice of the wicked. God, who discovers him-
self to the simple, hides his light from the crafty,
and confounds the false prudence of the world. Christ
does not tell these men from whence his authority
came ; but his miracles tell them very plainly. Thev
who did not believe these, would not have believed
him upon his bare word. The silence of the truth
is one of the most terrible punishments of the divine
justice in this world.

c2

52 ST. LUKE.

Sect. II. — The 'Parable of the Vineyard and Hus-
bandmen. The Corner-stone rejected.

" 9. f Then began he to speak to the people this
parable : A certain man planted a vineyard, and let
it forth to husbandmen, and went into a far country
for a long time."

A pastor ought to look upon his church as a vine-
yard, planted by the hand of Christ, of which he is
only the husbandman, hired to cultivate it with care,
and to render all the fruit thereof to his Master.
Christ, who is absent from his vineyard as to his
visible presence, is continually present there by his
protection, by his Spirit, and by his invisible presence
in the eucharist. Faithful pastors live, as having him
for a constant witness of their conduct, and labour
as under his inspection. He is at a distance only
to those who have no faith. The good pastor watches
and labours, as expecting his Master every moment,
and believing him to be at the very door. The
hireling is negligent and slothful, because his faith
as to the coming of the supreme Pastor is extinguished
and dead, and because the moment of this present
life seems to him a long time.

" 10. And at the season he sent a servant to the
husbandmen, that they should give him of the fruit
of the vineyard : but the husbandmen beat him, and
sent him away empty."

Christ demands the use of his graces, and the fruit
of his mysteries and his blood, of those to whom he
has intrusted the dispensation of them, by calling
them to the sacred ministry. It is a most dreadful
itate, to be found at death under a total incapacity

CHAPTER XX. 53

of answering this demand. As it is always a proper
season to work in the Lord's vineyard : so it is
always a proper season to require the fruit thereof.
He requires both the one and the other of his minis-
ters by his inspirations. They do despite to his
Spirit who reject them, and who live in idleness or
luxury, appropriating to themselves all the advan-
tages of the ministry, without doing anything in the
church for the glory of God, or the salvation of souls.

" 11. And again he sent another servant: and
they beat him also, and entreated him shamefully,
and sent him away empty."

The holy Scripture may be looked upon as a se-
cond servant, which calls upon and urges the minis-
ters of the Lord to labour in gaining souls, and
consecrating them to him. It is but too true, that
the word of God is abused, and shamefully treated,
by those to whom God has sent it in order to their
salvation, and to that of his church. We too often
see mercenary and faithless pastors read it without
any respect, make it subservient to their vanity and
ambition, despise its admonitions, and treat it as a
profane and dangerous book.

" 12. And again he sent a third: and they
wounded him also, and cast him out."

A wicked pastor involves himself continually more
and more in sin, and is provoked by all those admo-
nitions to do his duty, which are given him either
by God himself, or by men animated with his Spirit,
or by the example of such a conduct as is truly pas-
toral. These seldom fail of being persecuted by
those who look upon their life as a condemnation of
their own. Pastors who walk disorderly, cannot bear

54 ST. LUKE.

with any patience the most charitable admonitions;
and men seldom admonish them of their duty with-
out suffering for it.

" 13. Then said the lord of the vineyard, What
shall I do? I will send my beloved son : it may be
they will reverence him when they see him. 14.
But when the husbandmen saw him, they reasoned
among themselves, saying, This is the heir : come,
let us kill him, that the inheritance may be ours."

Whoever proposes to himself to satisfy his worldly
desires in the priesthood or pastoral office, will make
no difficulty of sacrificing Christ and his whole reli-
gion to them. When covetousness, ambition, or
the love of pleasures, has once taken possession of
the heart of a priest, he is but little concerned that
abundance of souls perish, and that Christ is crucified
afresh, provided he can but gratify his passion. They
may justly be said to kill Jesus Christ in souls, who,
by their negligence, are instrumental in causing them
to lose the life of faith and grace. They kill him
in the poor, who let such die with hunger or misery,
while they waste their patrimony in luxury and excess.

" 15. So they cast him out of the vineyard, and
killed him. What therefore shall the lord of the

vineyard do unto them ?"

j

Jesus Christ, excommunicated by the Jews, and
put to death without the gate of Jerusalem, to bear
the curse denounced against the sinner, teaches pas-
tors to expose themselves to every thing, rather than
to be wanting to the truth, to the salvation of souls,
and to Jesus Christ himself. There are some occa-
sions on which they ought to be ready, as Paul and
as Jesus Christ were, to be anathematized by unjust

CHAPTER XX. 55

excommunications, which are never ratified in hea-
ven, that they may continue internally united to
Christ and the church in performing their duty.
They who, to satisfy their passion and hatred, are
for casting out of the church those who are resolved
not to forsake it, are in reality for casting Christ out
of his vineyard, and out of Jerusalem, in order to
crucify him.

" 16. He shall come and destroy these husband-
men, and shall give the vineyard to others. And
when they heard it, they said, God forbid."

Men may resolve, if they think fit, not to hear
the denunciation of those punishments which are
due to mercenary, idle, unjust, and turbulent pastors,
such as are guilty of robbing the poor; the misery
which attends them will thereby become the more
dreadful. The Judge, the Lord of the vineyard,
shall come; and who will be able to abide his pre-
sence? He will destroy all prevaricating and un-
faithful ministers; and what refuge can be found,
when God undertakes to destroy the sinner? He
will give the vineyard to others; and what despair
must be their portion who have no more communion
with the church, no more part in Christ, and no
longer any God but an avenger, eternally intent on
punishing sin.

" 17. And he beheld them, and said, What is
this then that is written, The stone which the builders
rejected, the same is become the head of the corner?"

Christ himself, the foundation, cement, and or-
nament of his church, was rejected by those who
flattered themselves with beincr the builders thereof.
What therefore must not those of his ministers ex-

56 ST. LUKE.

pect, who are resolved to walk in his steps ? He
shows the scribes their ignorance in not knowing the
Messias by the Scriptures, of which they imagined
they had the key. He who judges of the holiness
and virtue of the ministers of Christ in this life, by
the ill usage which they here receive from the world,
beholds them only with the eyes of Jews and Phari-
sees. Their lot and portion here below is to be
treated as the Prince of pastors was: it is in heaven
that they will enter into his power and glory.

" 18. Whosoever shall fall upon that stone shall
be broken ; but on whomsoever it shall fall, it will
grind him to powder."

The punishment of sinners is terrible even in this
world; but it is without remedy in the other. The
Jews rejected, despised, and put Christ to shame,
only in the time designed for his humiliations and
the ignominy of his cross; and yet their punishment
was beyond example : what then will that of Chris-
tians be, who, as far as in them lies, crucify him
afresh, and put him to an open shame, in the very
time appointed for his reign, and in his state of glory
and power? They who persecute good men in this
world, are only instruments of good to them ; and
are themselves broken to pieces, like a glass which
falls upon the hardest stone. But how dreadful will
their punishment be, when he, who comes to avenge
his elect, shall appear with them, and employ all his
majesty to confound, and all his power to punish
these miserable wretches !

CHAPTER XX. 57

Sect. III. — God and Cesar.

" 19. f And the chief priests and the scribes the
same hour sought to lay hands on him ; and they
feared the people: for they perceived that he had
spoken this parable against them."

A soul is in a very desperate condition indeed,
when the most wholesome admonitions, and the de-
nunciations of the greatest miseries, do but provoke
and carry it to greater excesses. My God, what
is the heart of man when left to himself! The fear
of God and of his eternal justice makes not the least
impression upon him ; and the fear of men and of
temperal evil restrains and governs him. Fear re-
strains only the hand; but the heart is abandoned to
sin, so long as it is not guided and directed by the
love of righteousness.

" 20. And they watched him, and sent forth spies,
which should feign themselves just men, that they
might take hold of his words, that so they might
deliver him unto the power and authority of the
governor."

The mask of piety is often serviceable to the
wicked in the execution of the worst designs. To
be exposed to the artifices of hypocrisy, is a very
uneasy and difficult condition for good men, wherein
they have great occasion for Christian prudence.
Charity forbids us to judge of our neighbour's heart;
and prudence requires us not to trust to outward
appearances. Prudence ought to guide charity, to
prevent its being imposed upon; and candour ought
to accompany prudence, that it may not be too sus-
picious: but it is thy light, O Jesus, which must

c3

58 ST. LUKE.

enlighten both ; it is thy Spirit which must make
them act; and prayer is the thing which attracts and
draws down both these.

" 21. And they asked him, saying, Master, we
know that thou sayest and teachest rightly, neither
acceptest thou the person of any, but teachest the
way of God truly ;"

We ought always to suspect the praises which are
given by men devoted to the world. The wicked
person is so corrupted, that he seldom speaks truth
but with an intent to deceive : but truth is so power-
ful, that it makes use even of his tongue to condemn
him. The knowledge which a minister of the truth
has of his duties, renders his sin the greater, when
he either betrays it out of respect of persons, or
corrupts it by falsehood and lies. Let us consider
neither the design of those who deliver the truth,
nor the ill use they make thereof, but the truth it-
self, and the account which God will require us to
give of it. It is a light carried by a wicked wretch,
which, notwithstanding, shows us the way, and dis-
covers to us the precipices. The power of God
shines forth more illustriously, and his wisdom is the
more to be admired, when he makes even the ene-
mies of truth instrumental in publishing and promot-
ing it.

" 22. Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto
Cesar, or no?"

None but an impious person makes any question
concerning his duty towards his sovereign. He who
will not bear the yoke of God, bears that of his
prince with great regret, and thinks of nothing but
how to shake it off. He who serves God, serves

CHAPTER XX. 59

his king: and it is one part of religion, to honour
God in the most lively image of his greatness and
sovereign power. How can any one call in question
the rights of this second majesty, without offending
the first and eternal majesty, in whose word they are
plainly declared ; or pretend to dispute an ohedience,
which ought never to be contested?

" 23. But he perceived their craftiness,* and said
unto them, Why tempt ye me?" [* Fr. Malice.]

No veil can hide from the eyes of God that which
passes in the most secret corner of man's heart. Of
what advantage is it to the sinner to deceive the
eyes of men for a moment, by concealing his wicked-
ness from them under the deceitful appearances of
piety and virtue? He who is to judge all things,
sees them all; and will, by the light of the great
day, expose every thing to open view which is now
so carefully disguised and concealed from the sight
of men. Christ discovers the hidden malice of his
enemies, who designed to surprise him : but he dis-
covers likewise, at the same time, the goodness, gen-
tleness, and patience of his own heart, in reproving
with such soft words so black an instance of hypoc-
risy and malice.

44 21. Show me a penny. Whose image and
superscription hath it? They answered and said,
Cesar's."

The prince's name and image, and the right of
giving money its current value, are marks of sove-
reign authority over his subjects: how then, O Jesus,
can I ever dispute thine over my heart, and over all
that I am; how can I do this, who bear thy name
and image, and who have no worth or value, but that

60 ST. LUKE.

only which thou art pleased to give me ! Thou,
Lord, canst increase my value, canst render me wor-
thy of that sacred name thou causest me to hear, and
canst renew thy image in me: and all this I hope
for from thy grace.

" 25. And he said unto them, Render therefore
unto Cesar the things which be Cesar's, and unto
God the things which be God's."

We see here one of the principal titles which
kings have to obedience and subsidies by divine right.
It is one part of the law of God and of Christian
piety, to be subject to them in every thing which
belongs to their jurisdiction. We must never sepa-
rate these two sentences which Christ has joined
with so much wisdom ; that so we may never do any
thing contrary to the rights of God in obeying
princes, and never violate the rights of princes under
pretence of doing service to God. The more zeal-
ous princes are in " rendering to God the things
which be God's," and in obliging others to do the
same, the more faithful will God cause their people
to be in rendering to princes the things which are
theirs. No reason, no conjuncture, no human power,
can excuse subjects from being faithful to their prince,
since Jesus Christ enjoins them to be so.

" 26. And they could not take hold of his words
before the people : and they marvelled at his answer,
and held their peace."

God guides and directs that person's tongue,
whose heart is devoted to him. One of the most
proper ways to preserve peace without doing any
prejudice to the truth, to take away from its enemies
al! pretences of doing it without provoking them, to

CHAPTER XX. 61

change their artifices into admiration, and to put
them to silence without the expense of many words,
is carefully to weigh every word which we are ahout
to speak, when we lie under any obligation to speak
at all. It is of great importance, to speak still with
more circumspection of that which concerns matters
of state and the interests of princes, to say no more
than what is absolutely necessary, and to hold the
scales even between God and Cesar, heaven and hell,
the church and the court.

Sect. IV. — The Resurrection of the Dead. The
Angelical Life.

" 27. 51 Then came to him certain of the Saddu-
cees, which deny that there is any resurrection ; and
they asked him,"

The devil never ceases to lay snares for the minis-
ters of Christ and for his church, as he did continu-
ally for Christ himself during his mortal life. He
never wants new stratagems, when the first have
proved unsuccessful. We must not therefore ever
grow supine and careless, but we must be always
prepared to oppose his attempts, and to secure our-
selves against his wiles.

" 28. Saying, Master, Moses wrote unto us, If
any man's brother die, having a wife, and he die
without children, that his brother should take his
wife, and raise up seed unto his brother."

It is by the priesthood that the church is made
fruitful, and that the bishops are the husbands of
the church in Jesus Christ, and become thereby his
brethren in a particular manner. There are but too
many who would fain espouse this holy widow : but

62 ST. LUKE.

alas, how few are there who are willing to bewail
with her the death of her Lord, to lead with her a
poor, desolate, and afflicted life, and to raise up chil-
dren to her by labouring to raise them up to Christ !
If to leave a brother's widow childless were a disgrace
and infamy under the law ; what shame will it be
for you in the sight of God, ye slothful and idle
ministers, if ye raise not up children unto Jesus
Christ by the ministry of the word, by prayers, and
by the labours proper to the hierarchy.

" 29. There were therefore seven brethren : and
the first took a wife, and died without children.
30. And the second took her to wife, and he died
childless. 31. And the third took her; and in like
manner the seven also : and they left no children,
and died."

Disorderly marriages, and such as proceed from
incontinence, are frequently punished with barrenness.
And the spiritual marriage betwixt a bishop and his
church is but too commonly attended with a deplo-
rable barrenness, when he brings along with him
neither a call, nor virtues, nor talents, but only am-
bition, avarice, and other criminal passions. This
long list of husbands dying childless, is a sad repre-
sentation of the desolation and barrenness of so many
diocesses, whose lot it is to have, for bishops, persons
who contemn their spouses, and leave them barren.

" 32. Last of all the woman died also. 33. There-
fore in the resurrection whose wife of them is she?
for seven had her to wife/'

With how many vain questions and fruitless curi-
osities does man fill his mind on these occasions,
instead of making a Christian use of worldly events ?

CHAPTER XX. 63

God frequently confounds the designs which men
frame before-hand, concerning children who are not
yet come into the world. He obliges them to think
rather of dying to this present world, than of im-
mortalizing themselves by a numerous and flourish-
ing posterity, the hopes whereof are so deceitful and
uncertain. Nothing but the glorious resurrection
can render us immortal; and nothing but the hopes
we have of this, can yield us any comfort and con-
solation here below. It is by our fruitfulness in
good works that we must do all we can to deserve it,
and attain unto it.

" 34. And Jesus, answering, said unto them, The
children of this world marry, and are given in mar-
riage : 35. But they which shall be accounted wor-
thy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from
the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage :"
Who shall be accounted most worthy to obtain
that world, but he who has most despised the present,
and all its transitory advantages, and, by Christian
hope, set his heart entirely upon invisible treasures
and the years of eternity ? The virtue of a good
life, which makes us counted worthy of that which
is eternal, being founded only upon the grace and
mercy of God, does not in the least hinder it from
being a pure gift of the divine bounty. Let us
aspire to this angelical life of the saints after the
resurrection, the first advantage of which is a virginal
purity. Let us begin it even in this life if we are
able, every one according to his gift and the state
whereunto he is called.

" 36. Neither can they die any more : for they are
equal unto the angels; and are the children of God,
being the children of the resurrection."

64 ST. LUKE.

The second advantage of the saints after the
resurrection is, to partake of the immortality of the
angels. They will then have no more passions, no
more occasion for food, and no more fear of dying,
than pure spirits. The third advantage of the glory
of the children of the resurrection is, a new birth,
wherein they will have no other father but the Fa-
ther of the world to come, who will restore life to
the members, as he has restored it to the Head, by
the eternal and immortal Spirit working in them.
The fourth advantage of the saints raised from the
dead will consist in this, that they will no longer have
any thing of the life of Adam, but will be wholly
regenerated to a new life, and become entirely the
children of God both in soul and body.

" 37. Now, that the dead are raised, even Moses
showed at the bush, when he calleth the Lord the
God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God
of Jacob.''

That which our Lord mentions here, is a convinc-
ing proof of the resurrection. Neither the rem em-
brance nor the reward of the righteous can be lost.
God, who renders their piety immortal in heaven,
owes to his justice the resurrection of their bodies,
which make a part of themselves. The martyrs
having lost the life of the body for the sake of God,
it belongs to his justice to restore it to them again
by the resurrection. The rest of the saints have
also made a sacrifice thereof by the disposition of
their hearts, which were prepared for every thing,
as Abraham was to sacrifice himself in his son,
Isaac to give up his own life, and Jacob to sacrifice
that of his son Joseph in another manner.

CHAPTER XX. 65

" 38. For he is not a God of the dead, but of the
living : for all live unto him."

They who are to rise again, only that they may
die eternally, do not properly live unto him. Those
live continually unto him, who have lost their lives
only for the short moment of this present world, and
for whom God reserves an immortal life, which by
means of hope they enjoy even already. Abraham
received an earnest and figure of it in his son, who
survived his sacrifice; Isaac in himself; and Jacob in
his son Joseph. Lord, confirm and strengthen in me
the faith and hope of this new life; and grant that
I may always live unto thee and for thee.

" 39. Then certain of the scribes answering, said,
Master, thou hast well said."

To approve of truth is certainly a very good thing :
but when we do it not at all times, we have reason to
fear that we do not approve of it out of any love we
have for truth itself; but either out of a fondness for
our own opinion, or through a personal opposition to
those who entertain a contrary, or from a mere want
of power to contradict it, or a proud usurpation of the
key of knowledge, and of the right to judge of every
thing. We must give our approbation of the truth
as disciples, and not as masters; with humility, and
not with pride and ostentation, like these scribes.

" 40. And after that they durst not ask him any
question at all."

The silence of the enemies of truth is no mark
either of the conversion of their hearts, or of the
conviction of their minds. Oftentimes they cease to
oppose it in the way of dispute, only that they may
lay more dangerous snares for it, and oppress it either

66 ST. LUKE.

by open force, or secret combination. God is the
Lord and disposer of all things. It is always for
his glory to render truth victorious in dispute; it is
often for his glory to permit the defenders of it to
sink under the artifices and violence of its enemies.

Sect. V. — Christ the Son and Lord of David.
Proud and covetous Scribes.

"41. H And he said unto them, How say they
that Christ is David's son ?"

Christ was born the son of David according to the
flesh, to accomplish the promises; but he was not
born of that royal family, till after it was fallen into
poverty and obscurity, to give us an example of hu-
mility, to teach us to despise all advantages of this
kind, and to confound the vanity of men.

" 42. And David himself saith in the book of
Psalms, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on
my right hand,"

David, in owning the Messias to be his Lord,
owns him to be the Son of God, equal to his Father
by his eternal birth, humbled under his almighty
hand by his temporal birth, and exalted and placed
at his right hand by his new birth to immortal life,
which puts his human nature into possession of the
rights belonging to his divine. Rest, glory, and an
almighty power in heaven and on earth to iorm the
kingdom of God, are denoted by this sitting. This
ought to be the continual object of our adoration,
our joy, and our confidence.

" 43. Till I make thine enemies thy footstool."

Jesus will be eternally the same; but even to the
end of the world he will do no other thing but what

CHAPTER XX. 67

he does at present, to form his church, to destroy sin,
and to fight for and in his elect against the power of
hell, and against concupiscence. Christ has now
no other enemies besides those of our salvation and
of the whole church. It is only for our sakes that
he triumphs over them. When will it be, O Lord,
that I shall behold every thing reduced under thy
feet which in me opposes thy law ; and, above all,
my evil will and corrupt inclinations, which are my
greatest enemies as well as thine !

"44. David therefore calleth him Lord, how is
he then his son ?"

Jesus Christ, that adorable compound of God and
man, contains in himself both lowliness and great-
ness, dependency and sovereign independency, the
creature and the Creator, the God who gave being
and life to David, and the man who received a body
derived from his blood, and united to the person of
the divine Word. Let us steadfastly believe this
mystery, of a God who became the Son of man, that
men might become the children of God : for on this
very thing our salvation does depend ; and this second
mystery is annexed to the first.

" 45. % Then, in the audience of all the people,
he said unto his disciples, 46. Beware of the
scribes, which desire to walk in long robes, and love
greetings in the markets, and the highest seats in
the synagogues, and the chief rooms at feasts ;"

Such pastors or teachers, as are proud, ambitious,
hypocritical, and covetous, are more dangerous than
common and ordinary sinners. A bad example,
supported by the authority, reputation, and majesty
of religion, is a very subtile poison, from which it is

68 ST. LUKE.

very difficult for men to preserve themselves. It is
a great misfortune for any people, to be obliged to
beware of those very persons who ought to be their
rule and pattern. In vain do those preach humility
by their words, whose whole conduct and behaviour
preaches nothing but pride. When we see in those
whom God enjoins us to respect, such inclinations as
are agreeable to seif-love, it is very difficult for us
not to approve of them ; and not to follow a guide
authorized by his character, when he shows us a way
to which natural propensity already carries us with
violence.

" 47. Which devour widows' houses, and for a
show make long prayers : the same shall receive
greater damnation."

Christian widows, above all persons, ought to be-
ware of the great pretenders to devotion. The ne-
cessity of seeking counsel and assistance abroad for
want of that of a husband, the diligence and craft
of a hypocrite who makes himself necessary, the
easiness of their sex, the liberty they have to dispose
of their estate, the impression which a religious ap-
pearance makes upon them, &c. render widows very
capable of being deceived. They who sell their
prayers and their advice at so dear a rate, shall pay
dearly themselves for that whereof they rob the poor,
by robbing pious widows, who are the common refuge
of such distressed persons.

CHAPTER XXI. 69

CHAPTER XX I.

Sect. I. — The poor Widow giving out of her
Penury.

" 1. And he looked up, and saw the rich men
casting their gifts into the treasury."

Christ, even now, beholds, with no less attention,
the visible hand and the invisible heart, both of the
rich and poor. We must desire to be seen by no
other eyes but those of Christ, if we desire to re-
ceive the invisible reward of charity, and not the
empty reward of vanity. Christ does not blame any
thing in these rich men, to teach us, not to judge of
the intentions, when the action is in itself good.

u 2. And he saw also a certain poor widow cast-
ing in thither two mites."

A poor man who gives to God even the neces-
saries of life, is a sight more worthy to attract the
eyes of Christ, than a rich man who gives millions
out of his superfluity. It is the same in proportion,
as to all other actions. They are not the eminent
actions of the great, which are great in the sight of
God : but they are those which are done with a true
Christian heart, a heart which is thoroughly sensible
of its own poverty, which, like a widow, bewails the
death of the heavenly Bridegroom, and sighs only for
him, which offers to God whatever it is, whatever it
does, and whatever it possesses, and yet always be-
lieves it scarce ever offers to him any thing at all.

" 3. And he said, Of a truth I say unto you,
that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all."

70 ST. LUKE.

God judges of the greatness of the gift, not by
the gift itself, but by the heart which offers it. The
applause which the great gifts of the rich receive, the
complacency they take in them, and the little reli-
gion wherewith they are frequently accompanied,
degrade and lessen them in the sight of God. A
poor person, rich in faith, charity, and humility,
cannot possibly offer small gifts ; because religion
heightens, enobles, augments, and multiplies the
least things which it consecrates to God.

" 4. For all these have of their abundance cast
in unto the offerings of God : but she of her penury
hath cast in all the living that she had."

The rich man who gives a great deal, yet still
reserves a great deal to himself. Nothing remains
to the poor man who gives all he has, but only con-
fidence in God. God does not indeed reject the
voluntary sacrifice of that which is superfluous : but
for a man to offer even necessaries, is to offer his
own life : it is to sacrifice his own heart, which loves
nothing so much as life. God manifests his great-
ness, and the power of his grace, in disengaging a
soul even from that which is most necessary to life,
and raising it above the fears of poverty, by the love
of religion, and the belief of Providence.

Sect. II. — The Destruction of the Temple. False

Christs.

<s 5. f And as some spake of the temple, how it
was adorned with goodly stones and gifts, he said,
6. As for these things which ye behold, the days
will come, in the which there shall not be left one
gtone upon another, that shall not be thrown down."

CHAPTER XXI. 71

That which appears most magnificent to the eyes
of the flesh, may amuse the curiosity of men; but it
is not worthy of the observation of Christ, or of the
admiration of his members. They who have other
eyes besides those of the body, have likewise another
beauty to admire besides that which must perish.
Christ, by his conduct, teaches us, what use we
ought to make of the sight of such objects as these;
namely, to consider, that in a very little time they will
disappear and be no more, and that there is nothing
solid and durable but that which is not seen. The
wrath of God, which broke out with so much fierce-
ness against this figurative temple, is but a shadow of
that wrath which he frequently exercises upon king-
doms, provinces, and souls, wherein he has been
served and worshipped, and which have abused his
greatest gifts.

" 7. f And they asked him, saying, Master, but
when shall these things be? and what sign will there
be when these things shall come to pass ?"

Nothing is more useful and profitable than to
discourse concerning the judgments of God, the de-
struction of every thing which makes the greatest
figure in the world, and the end even of this sinful
world itself: nothing is more unprofitable than to
entertain and amuse our minds with the beauty of
human works. Christ could not be induced to ad-
mire the latter; but he very readily enters into a
conversation about the former.

" 8. And he said, Take heed that ye be not de-
ceived : for many shall come in my name, saying, I
am Christ; and the time draweth near: go ye not
therefore after them."

If the apostles themselves had need of being

72 ST. LUKE.

warned not to mistake, in taking a seducer for a Sa-
viour, a false Christ for the true; alas ! what seduce-
ment have we not reason to fear? We find a false
Christ, whenever we find a deceitful guide, who
directs us not to Jesus Christ, who leads us to a
church which is not his, who inspires us with a doc-
trine which he never taught, who diverts us from the
way of the gospel, and who, by his whole conduct,
carries us at a distance from the cross and from sal-
vation.

" 9. But when ye shall hear of wars and commo-
tions, be not terrified : for these things must first
come to pass; but the end is not by and by."

Wars are the forerunners of the last judgment,
the beginning of the divine vengeance upon sinners,
and an emblem of the destruction of the world. To
punish sinners, God need only abandon them to their
own passions, from whence proceed quarrels and law-
suits betwixt private persons, and wars and revolts
among states and princes. Those ambitious per-
sons, who lay waste whole provinces, who raise to
themselves so great a name in the world, what are
tney but the executioners of God's justice, who al-
ready begins his judgment? Great armies are for
the most part no other than great multitudes of
criminals, whom God draws together to punish one
another: the field of battle is only a great scaffold,
where they are made a spectacle to the rest of the
world; and fire and sword, the arms of his justice,
which he puts into their hands, that they may exe-
cute one another therewith. How dreadful then
will it be, when the end and consummation of this
justice shall come, and both the fire and the sword
shall be, as one may say, in the hand of God himself?

CHAPTER XXI. 73

" 10. Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise
against nation, and kingdom against kingdom :"

Seditions, rebellions, and civil wars, are fruits of
hell, and the work of the devil; but God makes use
of those as he does of these, to punish both kings
and people for their rebellions against him, and for
that intestine war which the flesh wages against the
Spirit in them both. None but God can bring
good out of so great evils ! but he makes them sub-
servient to his mercy in a small number of elect, and
to his justice in all besides.

"11. And great earthquakes shall be in divers
places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful
sights and great signs shall there be from heaven."

Let us fear sin, and love God, and we shall not
fear these evils. They are dreadful to none but
those whose bad conscience hinders them from lov-
ing the coming of Christ. To such they are dis-
mal presages of the end of all their false happiness,
and of the beginning of an endless misery; toothers
they are blessed omens of their approaching deliver-
ance, and of the kingdom of their Deliverer, and
means whereby they purify and prepare themselves
to appear before him with confidence. Happy is
that person who makes this use of all public calami-
ties, and who still finds something in them to nour-
ish his faith, to strengthen his hope, and to increase
his charity.

Sect. III. — Persecutions. A Mouth and Wisdom
given by God. Patience.

" 12. But before all these, they shall lay their
hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up
Vol. III. D 57

74 ST. LUKE.

to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought
before kings and rulers for ray name's sake. 13. And
it shall turn to you for a testimony."

Persecution is useful and profitable, because it
gives men an opportunity of making the truth known,
of giving testimony thereto at the expense of that
which is most dear to them, of trying their patience,
of knowing their own hearts, and of adhering the
more steadfastly to Christ, the more the world de-
spises and rejects them, and the more it endeavours
to force them to hate him. We are very forward to
appear before kings and great persons, in order to
receive benefits, and to pay them in praises and flat-
teries ; but we are never so to appear before them,
to tell them the truth, or to speak in favour of inno-
cence, which is the cause of Christ. Happy the
martyrs and confessors whom God has chosen and
rendered worthy to maintain the cause of truth and
righteousness, which is his own. Unhappy their
persecutors, not to know that those whom they treated
so cruelly were the only persons who could have pro-
moted their salvation, while those whom they loaded
with their favours were only instrumental to their
damnation.

" 14. Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to
meditate before what ye shall answer:"

It must necessarily be of very great importance,
then, for us not to depend either upon any light or
prudence with which our own understanding can sup-
ply us, or upon any strength or firmness which we
may promise ourselves from our own courage. He
who enjoins his servants to watch at all times, and to
pray without ceasing, is far from designing here to

CHAPTER XXI. 75

forbid them to do either; since it is by means even
of vigilance and prayer that this very thought is most
deeply settled in their hearts. It is a great part of
vigilance, and one of the chief fruits of prayer, for a
man to learn therein to put his whole trust and con-
fidence in God, and to rely only upon his grace.

" 15. For I will give you a mouth and wisdom,
which all your adversaries shall not be able to gain-
say nor resist."

No eloquence, no wisdom, except those which
God gives, are victorious, and proof against those of
the world. By faith, a man knows very well how to
resign himself up entirely to God without tempting
him. Can the Spirit of God then be less powerful
over the heart of man, when he speaks to him imme-
diately by himself, to cause him to do good, and
when he rules the will of his creature by his own al-
mighty will, to divert it from evil, than when he
speaks to one man by the mouth of another? Let
us be under no fear of any violence to be offered to
the freedom of our will, when it is its God and its
Creator who interposes to direct it; but let us fear
lest we should gainsay and resist the truth, which
assures us that nothing can gainsay or resist his
Spirit, when he is pleased to render his elect victo-
rious over the enemies of their salvation.

" 16. And ye shall be betrayed both by parents,
and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some
of you shall they cause to be put to death."

Obstacles and hinderances to piety, and even the
greatest persecutions, frequently proceed from our
friends and relations. They do us less hurt, when
they strip us of all we have, and deliver us up to the

d2

76 ST. LUKE.

executioner, than when they hinder us from follow-
ing Christ, and from being obedient to his law and
inspirations. In these days, men do not think they
have any, occasion to fear persecution from their
friends and relations ; and it is this very thing which
renders it the more dangerous. Do they persecute
us less, when they deliver us up to ambition, vanity,
and the torrent of worldly desires, by engaging us in
dangerous employments, and advancing us to great
places? Is eternal salvation of less value than the
life of the body?

" 17. And ye shall be hated of all men for my
name's sake."

Happy is that person who is hated by the world
for the sake of Christ ! It is a sign that he loves
God, and is loved by him. Though a Christian, or
a minister of Christ, be to live only among Chris-
tians, he must, notwithstanding, expect to see the
world combined against him, whenever he shall main-
tain the interests of Christ against the world. Not
to resemble the world, is enough to draw upon us its
hatred ; but then it is likewise enough to make us
resemble Christ, and to entitle us to his love and the
protection of his grace. It is not the hatred of the
world which sanctifies us, but the love of God which
makes that hatred profitable to us, and the cause of
Christ which heightens and ennobles it.

" 18. But there shall not an hair of your head
perish."

Let us engrave these words upon our hearts, and
be thoroughly sensible how adorable the providence
of God over his servants is, and how great a source
of consolation it is for them. That which is lost

CHAPTER XXI. 77

only for a moment, is looked upon as a loss by none
but those who understand not the secret of the gos-
pel. When we cast seed into the earth which will
spring up, and in due season bear an hundred-fold,
we do not lose it in any respect; but to be unwilling
to lose any thing in this manner, is the certain way
to lose every thing.

" 19. In your patience possess ye your souls."
It is patience aione which renders us masters of
ourselves, under the loss of all things. Persecution,
which deprives those of every thing whose heart is
in their treasure, secures every thing to those who
have the good treasure in their heart. Christian
suffering is the price of salvation. It is by this that
sinners obtain righteousness, that the just preserve
it, that penitents recover it, that martyrs sacrifice
themselves for it, and that the saints receive the
crown thereof, and possess themselves in possessing
God.

Sect. IV. — The Siege of Jerusalem. Flight.

" 20. And when ye shall see Jerusalem com-
passed with armies, then know that the desolation
thereof is nigh."

We know by fatal experience that armies carry
desolation into all places; but we are not sufficiently
sensible that thev are the sins of men which draw
them together, which keep them up, which regulate
their operations in the council of the Lord of hosts,
and which occasion the success of them. The only
way either to disperse them, or to make them instru-
mental to our salvation, is to be converted.

78 ST. LUKE.

" 21. Then let them which are in Judea flee to
the mountains; and let them which are in the midst
of it depart out ; and let not them that are in the
countries enter thereinto."

The true way to flee from the wrath of God is to
flee from the world by retirement, or at least to flee
from sin by a speedy and sincere conversion. Happy
they, who, anticipating the time of wrath, have al-
ready fled to the mountain, the true church, leaving
a reprobate society, and never more returning into it !
Happy likewise is he, who, profiting by wholesome
admonitions, has recourse to God, whom we may
suppose signified by these mountains, who separates
himself from bad company and the occasions of sin,
and never more engages himself therein.

" 22. For these be the days of vengeance, that all
things which are written may be fulfilled."

Let us make the best use of the days of mercy, in
punishing sin in ourselves by repentance and mortifi-
cation, that we may anticipate the days of the divine
vengeance. Is not that with which every sinner is
threatened in case he be not converted, without com-
parison more to be dreaded, though it be less the ob-
ject of our senses ? We must frequently think of
it, if we would avoid it. We are afraid of repre-
senting this matter to our minds by serious reflection
and meditation, lest it should give us too much dis-
turbance and concern ; and our greatest misfortune
is, that we are not sufficiently disturbed and con-
cerned about it. We endeavour to lull our faith
asleep with respect to the threatenings whereof the
Scripture is full, lest too lively a faith should render
us uneasy : but can this insensibility hinder all things

CHAPTER XXI. 79

that are written from being fulfilled, if we continue
unconverted ?

" 23. But woe unto them that are with child, and
to them that give suck, in those days ! for there
shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon
this people."

Miserable is that person, whom natural tenderness
hinders from avoiding the wralh of God ! We are
never sufficiently sensible how dangerous it is to bring
ourselves under earthly ties, till we are forced either
to break them or perish. Let us begin betimes to
disengage ourselves from the incumbrances of the
world, that death may not find us loaded with chains
which we cannot shake off. The generality of per-
sons at that hour, being either filled with anxious
cares for their children, whom they are about to leave,
or wholly taken up with the concerns of a family of
which they are extravagantly fond, have no time to
flee from the wrath of God, which is just ready to
overwhelm them, and which will not end with death,
like that which is here spoken of.

" 24. And they shall fall by the edge of the
sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations :
and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gen-
tiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled."

What miseries do those undergo, even in this
world, who have rejected Jesus Christ ! The humi-
liation, slavery, and death, with which the Jews have
been punished, hinder not this miserable people from
still hoping to be recalled and re-established; but to
those whom the wrath of God shall overwhelm at the
last day, there will not remain even the least shadow
of any hope. The Jews are dispersed into ail na-

80 ST. LUKE.

tions, to proclaim and show to all the world, what a
people or a soul is without Jesus Christ ; what it is
to have let slip the time and opportunity of repent-
ance; and what it is to have heard, without brinmnff
forth any fruit, the Saviour and his Gospel. That
which has happened to this people, happens to every
one who is finally impenitent; but after a manner
which is much more dreadful.

Sect. V. — The Signs of the Last Judgment.
Redemption nigh.

" 25. 51 And there shall be signs in the sun, and
in the moon, and in the stars ; and upon the earth
distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the
waves roaring ;"

All nature will be armed against the sinner at the
day of judgment. God continually arms it against
us by drought, excessive rain, the barrenness of the
earth, the multitude of insects, the irregularity of
the seasons, the malignity of the air, &c. and we
take no notice that his finger is in all this. All these
convulsions of nature are no more than signs of the
divine wrath : how then will it be when God himself
shall appear, and pronounce the sentence of his judg-
ment against the wicked ! His goodness manifests
itself in the midst of the most terrible presages of his
fury; since it is by these that he would persuade us
to avoid his anger by repentance.

" 26. Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for
looking after those things which are coming on the
earth : for the powers of heaven shall be shaken."

Let faith work in us now the dread and terrors of
the last day. They will then be common to all, but

CHAPTER XXI. 81

profitable to few. The fear of temporal evils, of
which men already see the beginnings, may cause
indeed their hearts to fail them, but it cannot con-
vert them of itself. The fear of invisible and eter-
nal evils, which is excited by faith, accompanied with
hope, and sanctified and perfected by charity, is that
alone which is beneficial, and which is indeed more
the fear of the Lord than the fear of the evils them-
selves. Give us, Lord, now in the time of our health,
a calm and beneficial sight of thy justice, of which, at
the last hour, the trouble and fear of death generally
give but very imperfect notions, such as are false in
themselves, unworthy of thee, and altogether unpro-
fitable to the sinner.

" 27. And then shall they see the Son of man
coming in a cloud, with power and great glory."

Whoever has despised the Son of man in his hu-
mility, shall be forced to see him in all his majesty
and power. Those to whom his state of weakness
and humiliation, at his first coming, has been an
occasion of scandal and incredulity, shall, in the
power and glory of his second, behold their infidelity
confounded. We must, by a true meekness and
humility of heart, conform ourselves to the first, if
we desire to partake of the greatness and glory of
the second. It is just, O Jesus, that thou shouldst
appear for thy glory, in thy own natural greatness
and majesty — thou who, for my salvation, wast
pleased to appear mean, abject, and contemptible to
the eyes of men. Come then, Lord Jesus, in the
glory which is suitable to the only-begotten of the
Father.

" 28. And when these things begin to come to

D3

82 ST. LUKE.

pass, then look up, and lift up your heads ; for your
redemption draweth nigh."

O day of affliction and confusion for the repro-
bate, how dreadful art thou ! O day of redemption
and confidence for the elect, how desirable art thou !
At length the great mystery of the gospel is about
to be made manifest. The deceitful and imaginary
felicity of this world, and of the children thereof, is
just going to disappear, and to be changed into a
state of tears, despair, and misery, to all eternity; and
the light captivity, affliction, and momentary tears of
the elect, are going to be changed into the liberty,
joy, and glory of the children of God. God of
Israel ! when will this veil, which hides thy children
from the sight of the world, be taken away? When
wilt thou appear openly with thy elect in glory ?

" 29. And he spake to them a parable : Behold
the fig-tree, and all the trees : 30. When they now
shoot forth, ye see and know of your own selves that
summer is now nigh at hand. 31. So likewise ye,
when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that
the kingdom of God is nigh at hand."

As it is out of mercy that God gives presages of
his wrath, to the end that men may escape it by re-
pentance : so it is out of a particular tenderness to-
wards his elect, that he discovers to them the approach
of his kingdom. Ic is the approach of this kingdom
of eternal charity and justice, which enables them to
endure with patience the afflictions they meet with
under the reign of the iniquity and injustice of the
world. To see the elect always persecuted in this
world, their outward life appears no other than a
frightful winter to carnal eyes. But whoever could

CHAPTER XXI. 83

behold their inward life, all of faith and hope, would
see their heart, as it were, in a continual spring,
wherein they look upon present evils as past, and
future good as present. If this life be to the elect
the time of spring, the life of heaven is a perpetual
summer, which, without losing the flowers of the
spring, without feeling the decay of autumn, or fear-
ing the desolation of winter, possesses all sorts of
fruit in abundance. Let us pursue the hint which
Christ is here pleased to give us, by accustoming
ourselves to look upon this present world, its elements,
and seasons, as a representation of the world to come.
Sensual and sordid persons look upon the spring as
a time which is favourable to their pleasures and their
covetousness : true Christians look upon this general
resurrection of nature as a slight draught of the re-
surrection of the children of God, and as a sign of
the approach of the Sun of righteousness.

" 32. Verily I say unto you, This generation
shall not pass away till all be fulfilled."

Neither the crime of the Jews, nor the dispersion
of this nation, nor the destruction of Jerusalem which
Christ has just foretold, will hinder God from ful-
filling his promises with respect to the body of this
people. It is to this end that he still preserves
them, in order to bring them into his church, and
to conduct them to heaven, the true land of promise.
My God, how faithful art thou to man ; and yet man
cannot be persuaded to trust in thee !

" 33. Heaven and earth shall pass away ; but my
words shall not pass away."

The stability and truth of the word of God, whether
in relation to good or evil, is one of those perfections

84- ST. LUKE.

of which he is most jealous. It is the sin of bad
Christians, as well as of the Jews, not to give credit
to it. A king promises or threatens, and all obey :
but in respect of God, men live as if the promises
of eternal happiness, and the threatenings of the
miseries of hell, were only the predictions of an
almanack. Let us, therefore, take great care to fix
and settle our faith upon the veracity of God, and
the immutability of his word, to receive this word, to
hear and read it as the word of God, such as it
really is, let the person be what he will who delivers
it.

Sect. VI. — We must avoid the Pleasures and Cares
of this Life. Watchfulness and Prayer.

" 34. And take heed to yourselves, lest at any
time your hearts hv overcharged with surfeiting, and
drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day
come upon you unawares."

Nothing more plainly shows how little faith men
have as to the threatenings of God, of which his
word is full, than to observe that security, and that
forgetfulness of death, wherein the generality of
Christians live, although God every where declares
that we shall be surprised thereby. Almost all per-
sons endeavour to shut their eyes against this truth :
some by a life openly loose and disorderly, and by
sensual pleasures ; others by the multiplicity of affairs,
with which they are entirely taken up, and, as it
were, oppressed. Christian watchfulness is to be
found only in a penitential and retired life, or at least
in a life disengaged from pleasure, business, ambi-
tion, and the desire of worldly riches.

CHAPTER XXI. 85

<s 35. For as a snare shall it come on all them
that dwell on the face of the whole earth."

True Christians, who seek the things above, and
not those on the earth, may be compared to the fowls
of the air, which, so long as they keep at a distance
from the earth, have no occasion to fear the fowler's
nets. Woe unto those who, as it were, settle here
belo v ; and whom the care of worldly affairs, the
desi e of raising a fortune, and the love of this pre-
sent life and of the conveniencies thereof, render per-
fect .y men of the earth. Let us, with the wings of
fail n and hope, raise ourselves up to heaven, that we
m y not be caught in the net here below.

" 36. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that
ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things
that shall come to pass, and to * stand before the
Son of man." [* Fr. Appear with confidence.]

Watchfulness and prayer are absolutely necessary
to prepare us to appear with confidence at the last
day. The one is inseparable from the other, and
both are so from good works ; since we cannot be
attentive to our duty but through a desire of per-
forming it, and since we pray only in order to obtain
the grace of being faithful thereto. We must watch
and pray always and at all times, because at all times
we may be summoned before the tribunal of God.
If our tongue cannot always pray, yet our heart
can : for this prays to God, when it desires God and
his will, and when it hungers and thirsts after his
righteousness and eternal happiness. A great part
of our confidence and virtue consists in being diffident
of ourselves, and in relying solely upon the grace and
mercy of God, by acknowledging our own unworthi-
ness and inability.

86 ST. LUKE.

" 37. And in the day-time he was teaching in the
temple; and at night he went out, and abode in the
mount that is called the mount of Olives. 38. And
all the people came early in the morning to him in
the temple, for to hear him."

The usual division of our blessed Saviour's public
life was, to instruct the people in the day-time, to
pray to his Father during the night, to join mortifi-
cation with prayer, and to be always ready to begin
his labours again early in the morning. In how
happy and flourishing a condition is a church, when
a people, hungering after the word of God, meets
with a pastor as desirous to feed them with it ; and
who joins to his instructions watchfulness and prayer,
mortification and labour ! The love and holy ear-
nestness of a well-disposed people towards the word
of God, animate the zeal of a pastor, and the pastor's
zeal and assiduity encourage and animate the people.

CHAPTER XXII.

Sect. I. — The Bargain and Treachery of Judas.

" 1. Now the feast of unleavened bread drew
nigh, which is called the passover."

The unleavened bread for the passover is purity
and innocence for the communion. The whole life
of a Christian ought to be exempt from the leaven of
sin ; because he ought to be always in a disposition
to celebrate the eucharistic passover, always ready to
go to keep the eternal passover in heaven. It is
always nigh in respect of that person who always
desires it, and prepares himself continually for it.

CHAPTER XXII. 8*7

Cease not, O Lord, to purify my heart even to the
end, thou who hast been pleased to make it, as it
were, unleavened bread by baptism, in order to its
being one day the bread of God in the glory of
heaven.

w 2. And the chief priests and scribes sought how
they might kill him ; for they feared the people."

Ungrateful wretches ! whose minds are wholly
taken up with designs of death and destruction against
Christ, whilst his is full of designs of life and salva-
tion for the Jews, and for all mankind. That per-
son is in a very miserable state, who is afraid of sin
upon no other than human motives. This is not to
hate sin, but only to love himself. When those,
who, by their profession, ought to breathe nothing
but holiness and truth, are restrained only by tem-
poral fear, that passion will soon be overcome by one
more violent and powerful.

" 3. f Then entered Satan into Judas surnamed
Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve."

A priest, a minister of the Lord, is seldom cor-
rupted only in part. If he be not a man of God,
and a faithful instrument in his work, he has jrreat
reason to fear lest he should become a man of the
devil, and an instrument in promoting his designs of
darkness. Nothing gives more horror than the sight
of a person possessed; and yet it had been a desir-
able mercy for Judas to have been delivered up to
Satan to be tormented in his body, rather than to
have his heart possessed by the devil, and abandoned
to his temptation and illusion. It is avarice, or the
desire of earthly riches, which generally lays open the
heart of ecclesiastical persons to the devil, as it did

88 ST. LUKE.

that of this apostle. They deliver up the key of
their hearts, when they deliver up themselves to this
passion.

" 4. And he went his way, and communed with
the chief priests and captains, how he might betray
him unto them."

He who has once given up his heart to sin, be-
comes capable of the greatest crimes. There may
possibly be one Judas or more in the most holy so-
ciety. We must not be scandalized, nor leave it on
this account. The means and opportunities which the
world seeks to invade the rights of the church, and
to persecute its ministers, are generally furnished by
ambitious clergymen, who are possessed with the spirit
of the world as it were with a devil. The avarice
and infidelity of one priest, betrays and delivers up
Christ to the envy and revenge of many others.
That which was seen once in the Head, will be seen
very often in the members.

" 5. And they were glad, and covenanted to give
him money."

It is a terrible judgment upon a sinner for him to
find means of putting his wicked designs in execu-
tion, and for God to permit him to meet with no
manner of obstacles therein. How many sins should
I have committed, O Lord, if thou hadst not vouch-
safed to oppose my corrupt will ! Blessed be thy
name for ever, for not having left me to myself, as
thou didst think fit to leave to themselves these un-
grateful priests.

" 6. And he promised, and sought opportunity to
betray him unto them in the absence of the multi-
tude."

CHAPTER XXII. 89

Whoever has a great desire to be rich, falls easily
into the greatest crimes. A priest whose heart is
corrupted by avarice, does not wait till an opportunity
to betray truth, justice, innocence, and Christ him-
self, is presented to him ; but he goes to meet it, he
seeks, he finds it, and delivers them up to their
greatest enemies. Shut my heart, O Jesus, against
the love of worldly riches, lest this love should set it
open to admit the greatest treacheries against thee,
or against the interests of thy glory.

Sect. II. — The Paschal Supper. The Eucharist.

" 7. % Then came the day of unleavened bread,
when the passover must be killed."

The best disposition to qualify a man to undergo
the greatest afflictions, and even death itself, is
quietly to perform his duty in the usual manner,
after the example of the Son of God, who sees every
thing which his enemies are contriving against him.
He prepares for the legal passover out of obedience
to the law : and, by this very thing, he prepares to
sacrifice himself as the true passover, by the appoint-
ment of his Father, and to give the type and figure
its full verity and completion. O holy and truly
sanctifying victim, I adore thee as the only person
amongst all mankind worthy to be offered to God,
being alone the true unleavened bread, the man with-
out sin, and the lamb without spot or blemish.

" 8. And he sent Peter and John, saying, Go
and prepare us the passover, that we may eat. 9.
And they said unto him, Where wilt thou that we
prepare ?"

One of the greatest cares of a Christian ought to

90 ST. LUKE.

be, to prepare himself to celebrate the Christian pass-
over, which is the holy communion, according to the
appointment of God, and the designs of its institution.
The Jews are so faithful in keeping their figurative
passover, in memory of a temporal deliverance; and
Christians, delivered from sin and hell by the sacri-
fice of Christ the true passover, either wholly neglect
to celebrate the memorial thereof by a worthy com-
munion, or perhaps, even whilst they do communi-
cate, think but little either of the death of Christ
who has delivered them, or even of the deliverance
itself.

" 10. And he said unto them, Behold, when ye
are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you,
bearing a pitcher of water ; follow him into the house
where he entereth in."

Christ knows whatever lies most concealed and
hidden in futurity. He by this gives his apostles a
new proof of his divinity, to awaken their faith, and
to prepare them for the belief of the mystery which
he is going to institute. Let us learn to judge
of this mystery, not by our own shallow reason, but
by the idea of the divine omnipotence.

"11. And ye shall say unto the goodman of the
house, The Master saith unto thee, Where is the
guest-chamber, where I shall eat the passover with
my disciples?"

Whoever is not a disciple of Jesus Christ, and has
not learned of him to renounce sin, and to love his
righteousness, cannot eat the passover with him, nor
receive his body and blood. This is the passover of
those who are delivered, and whose will cleaves no
longer to the world and sin, and who, like true

CHAPTER XXII. 91

Israelites, have their staff in their hand, just ready
to depart. He who is not, but whose will continues
still enslaved to Egypt and Pharaoh, to the world
and the devil through sin, cannot partake thereof;
as the Jews did not eat the legal passover till they
were just going out of Egypt, and were delivered from
their bondage under Pharaoh.

" 12. And he shall show you a large upper room
furnished : there make ready."

A large upper room is a large heart, extended by
charity, furnished and adorned with all Christian
virtues, and prepared and made ready by repentance
and purity. It is in such a heart that Christ de-
lights to keep his passover : but it belongs to him
alone to form and prepare such a heart.

" 13. And they went, and found as he had said
unto them : and they made ready the passover."

Men are never deceived when they obey the com-
mand of Christ. Peter and John prepare a passover
for the Son of God and his disciples ; but he him-
self is preparing another for them which they know
not of, and disposing himself to render them capable
of preparing it one day for the whole church, by
making them priests to consecrate his body and
blood, and to feed souls therewith.

" 14. And when the hour was come, he sat down,
and the twelve apostles with him."

Christ confines himself to the accustomed hours,
to teach us to comply with those of God, and to ob-
serve those appointed by the church for the times of
divine service and prayer, and for the duties of reli-
gion. Nothing has a more godly appearance, or can
seem more united than this society : but how great

92 ST. LUKE.

is the difference, in the sight of God, betwixt the
heart of Christ, just going to sacrifice himself to
God his Father for the salvation of the world, and
the heart of Judas, going to sacrifice himself to the
devil, in order to destroy even the Saviour of the
world himself?

" 15. And he said unto them, With desire I have
desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer :"

This earnest desire of Jesus Christ does not relate
to the legal and ceremonial passover, but to the eu-
charistic passover, and the sacrifice, of which he was
going to be the victim. The eucharistic passover
was celebrated once, by way of anticipation, before
the bloody sacrifice of the victim of salvation, and
before the deliverance it was appointed to com-
memorate; as the figurative passover had been like-
wise once celebrated before the going out of Egypt,
and the deliverance of God's chosen people. Let
us blush at our excessive coldness in relation to so
precious a gift, when we consider the ardent desire
and love with which Christ bestows it upon us. He
desires to unite himself to us in so close and intimate
a manner, as if he was to receive some advantage
from this union; and those, whose whole happiness
depends upon it, seem to decline and avoid it. Put
me, Lord, into such a disposition, as to desire it
more and more. Thou vouchsafest to give thyself
to me, because thou lovest me; grant that I may
love thee, to qualify me to receive thee.

" 16. For I say unto you, I will not any more
eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of
God."

The sacrifice of Jesus Christ, which is the com-

CHAPTER XXII. 93

pletion of the figurative sacrifices, is itself entirely
perfected and completed by that glory alone, which
qualifies the victim for the acceptance of God. One
communion prepares for the other: and one effect
which that of the eucharist ought to produce in us,
is, to make us desire the heavenly and eternal com-
munion. We here partake but imperfectly of the
mysteries and Spirit of Christ; we shall do it fully
and perfectly in heaven.

" 17. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and
said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves :"

Although this first cup belong not to the eucha-
rist, but either to the ordinary supper or to the legal
passover, yet it is sanctified by the thanksgiving of
the Son of God. It is by praise and thanksgiving
that we must prepare ourselves to receive the gifts of
God, and to offer and present our duties unto him.
He gives more than he receives, when he gives us
the grace to offer as we ought.

" 18. For I say unto you, I will not drink of the
fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall
come."

Jesus Christ exhibits and sets forth his death in
giving us his body and blood in the eucharist, which
is the memorial thereof; but he, at the same time,
exhibits and sets forth the kingdom of God in its
glory, of which his death is, as it were, the seed and
bud. Gratitude for the benefit of redemption, and
hope of heavenly felicity, are two dispositions and
duties with which we ought to have our minds and
hearts filled in the holy communion. This is the
true passover given to the church, both in the eu-
charistic sacrifice instituted in remembrance of the

94 ST. LUKE.

deliverance begun by grace, and in the sacrifice of
heaven, which shall be offered in thanksgiving for
the deliverance completed by glory.

"19. f And he took bread, and gave thanks,
and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is
my body, which is given for you : this do in remem-
brance of me."

The institution of the priesthood, of the sacrifice,
and sacrament of the altar of the new law, are three
different benefits, which deserve each of them a par-
ticular consideration and acknowledgment. What
is it to celebrate the holy sacrifice, and to communi-
cate in remembrance of Christ? It is to do it in
rendering his death present to us by faith. It is to
do it with a heart overflowing with gratitude for his
having redeemed us with his blood ; and to show, by
a life truly Christian, that we are dead to sin, to the
world, and to ourselves, and that we really partake of
the effects of his death, and of the spirit of his sac-
rifice.

" 20. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying,
This cup is the new testament * in my blood, which
is shed for you/' \_Fi\ Covenant.]

Our sacrifice supposes three effusions of the blood
of Christ: the first, representative upon the altar;
the second, real upon the cross; and the third, vir-
tual in our heart. This heart ought to be always a
holy altar: and it is but too often a new cross in re-
spect of Jesus Christ. Would to God that this
adorable blood were always the cement of a new co-
venant to souls ; and that it were not frequently the
occasion of removing them at a farther distance from
God, or even of separating them from him to all

CHAPTER XXII. 95

eternity ! To the end that thy blood, O Jesus, may
unite me eternally to thee, grant that it may now
separate me from myself, and from all my vicious in-
clinations.

"21. f But, behold, the hand of him that be-
traveth me is with me on the table."

Before we approach this mysterious table, let us
examine ourselves and see, whether our hands, that
is to say, our works, are the hands and works of a
Christian or of a traitor. To hold intelligence with
the enemies of Christ, namely, the world and sin,
and, at the same time, to eat at his table — this is
no other than to betray him, even after we have taken
an oath of fidelity to him in baptism.

" 22. And truly the Son of man goeth, as it was
determined : but woe unto that man by whom he is
betrayed !"

It is blasphemy to say that the treachery of Judas,
or that any other sin, is the work of God, as some
heretics have done : but it is true, that into what
disorders soever sinners are carried by their own will,
God is always more the master thereof than they are
themselves. He is so good aud so powerful, that
he makes their wickedness subservient to his own
designs: but the sinner is not at all the less punish-
able on this account; because he alone is the author
of his own wickedness.

" 23. And they began to inquire among them-
selves, which of them it was that should do this
thing."

No man knows into what temptation his own heart
will permit him to be drawn. Jesus Christ alone
can inform us. Prevent, O Lord, by thy grace,

96 ST. LUKE.

whatever my wretched will may possibly undertake
contrary to thine ! I cannot answer for my own heart ;
it belongs to thee, who art absolute master thereof,
to answer for it, and to put a stop to the wickedness
which thou perceivest in it.

Sect. III. — Imperiousness forbidden. Glory
promised.

" 24. ^[ And there was also a strife among them,
which of them should be accounted the greatest."

The apostles themselves received but little spiritual
advantage from the sacrifice and sacrament of the
eucharist, and from every thing which they had seen
before the death of Christ, and the mission of the
Holy Ghost. Never had they greater cause to
humble themselves than at this time, and yet they
now contend for pre-eminence ! The love of pre-
ference, so lively on this occasion in persons of no
birth, without talents or temporal advantages, makes
it evident that no man whatever is free from the
wound of pride, and that humility is in all persons a
gift of the grace of Christ.

" 25. And he said unto them, The kings of the
Gentiles exercise lordship over them ; and they that
exercise authority upon them are called benefactors. "

The true greatness of kings must necessarily con-
sist in doing good to their subjects, since those whose
government was most imperious and severe, affected
to have the name of benefactors. Those are great
indeed, and truly benefactors, who make the happi-
ness of their people their own glory, who never
punish but out of necessity, who cause justice to
reign and flourish, and who love more to command
their own passions than their subjects.

CHAPTER XXII. 97

" 26. But ye shall not be so: but he that is
greatest among you, let him be as the younger ; and
he that is chief, as he that cloth serve."

A pastor understands but little his place and office
in the church, if he pretend to signalize himself
therein, by power, imperiousness, and grandeur. The
advantage above others, which the ministers of the
church are permitted to desire, is to be more sacri-
ficed to God by a true humility, and more devoted
to the good of the church, and to the salvation of
souls, by an active, laborious, and indefatigable char-
ity. The marks of greatness and distinction are a
burden to a holy bishop : he bears them indeed be-
fore men out of necessity, but he complains of them
through humility before God.

" 27. For whether is greater, he that sitteth at
meat, or he that serveth ? is not he that sitteth at
meat ? but I am among you as he that serveth."

A pastor makes no manner of difficulty to stoop
to the meanest of his flock, when he considers that
he is really the servant, and not the lord of souls,
and that He who is their Lord, made himself their
servant. One hardly dares propose such an example
to the ministers of the church : but it is to no pur-
pose for them to refuse to hear it; it is notwith-
standing true, that the servitude of Jesus Christ is
the pattern for that of pastors, how eminent soever
they may be.

" 28. Ye are they which have continued with me
in my temptations :"

Christ glories in the fidelity of his servants, be-
cause it proceeds from himself. He is so good, that
he is pleased to impute to them as merit the gifts of

Vol. III. E 57

98 ST. LUKE.

his grace ; and to praise them for that perseverance
which he works in them by his Spirit. It is Jesus
Christ himself, who, throughout all ages, endures,
in his church and ministers, the temptations of the
world ; and it is he also, who places to account the
fidelity of those who continue with him, and forsake
him not.

" 29. And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my
Father hath appointed unto me;"

Whoever is not transported with joy at these
words, has little faith and relish for the things of
eternity. Who can comprehend the dignity and
advantage of being a disciple of Christ, whom he
vouchsafes to treat in the same manner wherein he
is himself treated by his Father ! How many truths
are comprised under this comparison ! What a
promise is this ! A promise unchangeable and free,
which implies infallible means, but, at the same time,
imposes a necessity of being conformable to Christ
crucified.

" 30. That ye may eat and drink at my table in
my kingdom, and sit on thrones, judging the twelve
tribes of Israel."

Glory is a state of joy, delight, power, and eternal
communion, in the great sacrifice of Jesus Christ.
Thou, O Jesus, art pleased to assure us, that the
pleasures, riches, and honours which we renounce for
thy sake, shall be restored to us an hundred-fold, by
the holy delights of a table where we shall feed on
God himself, by the infinite treasures of his eternal
kingdom, and by a sovereign power over all creatures.

CHAPTER XXII. 99

Sect. IV. — The Prayer for St. Peter's Faith. His
Denial foretold.

" 31. % And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, be-
hold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may
sift you as wheat :"

These efforts of Satan against Peter are a warn-
ing to us, and an emblem of those which he is con-
tinually making against all Christians. Let us fear
an enemy who is always desiring, and never weary
in soliciting, for leave to tempt us. Let us comfort
ourselves however, since it is hereby manifest that
he is not able to do any thing against us without
the permission of God. Lord, what should we be
in the time of temptation, but mere chaff which the
wind scatters away, did not thy grace give us the
firmness and solidity of wheat !

" 32. But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith
fail not : and when thou art converted, strengthen
thy brethren."

What would even the faith of Peter himself have
been, had it not been strengthened by the prayer of
Christ? It was likewise in Peter that the faith
of all the faithful, of whom he was the pastor; that
of all the pastors, of whom he was a principal one;
and that of the whole church, of which he was a
figure; were strengthened and fortified. No temp-
tation is overcome but by the virtue of this prayer,
which is even the oblation which this divine Media-
tor continually makes of his blood in heaven. Pe-
ter's sin did not proceed from infidelity, but infir-
mity. The experience which a pastor has had of
his own weakness, and the acknowledgment which

E 2

100 ST. LUKE.

he makes of the assistance which upheld him, are a
douhle engagement upon him to compassionate the
weakness of others, and to apply himself to the sup-
porting of them.

" 33. And he said unto him, Lord, I am ready-
to £0 with thee, both into prison, and to death."

How much presumption is there in man, before
he has himself experienced his own weakness ! The
stronger he believes himself, the more weak is he :
because his promising himself a great deal from his
own strength, is a sign that God has already left him
to himself. It is more difficult than we imagine, to
know what love has gained the ascendant over our
hearts. One of the chiefest of the aposties thought
the love of his Master most prevalent, and it was the
love of his own life.

" 34. And he said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock
shall not crow this day, before that thou shalt thrice
deny that thou knowest me."

The fall of Peter, thus foretold unto him, ad-
monishes us to renounce our own light and know-
ledge, especially as to what regards the disposition
of our heart. God and Christ, who is true God,
know better than ourselves the use which we shall
make of the freedom of our will; and yet this fore-
knowledge imposes _ no manner of necessity upon it.
God foresees all the evil which he permits, as he
predestinates all the good which he intends to per-
form in us.

" 35. % And he said unto them, When I sent
you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye
any thing? And they said, Nothing."

The providence of God is always watchful over

CHAPTER XXII. 101

such as forsake ail to follow Christ, and continually
mindful of their wants. It is of great use frequently
to revolve in our minds the conduct of God towards
us, because it ought to serve as a pledge and security
for the time to come. Those who are grateful are
always full of hope : none but the ungrateful distrust
the divine providence. In friendship, it is a crime
to be distrustful of a friend who has never failed us
in our necessity : but let God prevent all the wants
of his creature ever so much, yet he still finds a
heart subject to distrust and diffidence.

" 36. Then said he unto them, But now, he that
hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip :
and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment,
and buy one."

It is a virtue common to all true Christians, to
trust that nothing shall be wanting to them, either
for their subsistence or their safety : but it is an
apostolical virtue for a man to be ready, for the sake
of Christ, to disclaim all human relief and assistance,
and to expose himself as a mark to all men. It is
this state which our blessed Lord here foretells unto
them, by intimating to them what is generally done
by those who are either forsaken or assaulted by all
the world.

" 37. For I say unto you, That this that is writ-
ten must yet be accomplished in me, And he was
reckoned among the transgressors: for the things
concerning me have an end."

This is not the time for the true disciples of Christ
to depend upon the good-will of men, when Christ
himself is to be reckoned and treated as a transgressor
and malefactor. It is just and reasonable, that the

102 ST. LUKE.

members should share in the different conditions of
the Head. To be persecuted, and to suffer as a
heretic, as a wicked or an impious person, is gene-
rally the last trial, and the most meritorious, as being
that which gives a man the greatest conformity to
Jesus Christ.

" 38. And they said, Lord, behold, here are two
swords. And he said unto them, It is enough."

This answer of Christ, " It is enough," ought to have
made his apostles sensible of the greatness and near-
ness of the danger. These two swords were enough,
and even too much for him who designed to defend
himself only by delivering himself up, to fight only
by suffering, and to conquer only by dying. These
were enough to give occasion to Christ to instruct
the church, in one of the chief of the apostles, con-
cerning the use she was to make of the sword, con-
cerning the mildness we ought to show towards our
enemies, and the submission we ought to have for
authority ; and to give Christ an opportunity of do-
ing good to his persecutors, of making known his
power to them, and of showing them plainly that his
being seized by them, and his death, were altogether
voluntary on his part.

Sect. V. — The Agony in the Garden. The
Angel. The bloody Sweat.

" 39. <f[ And he came out, and went, as he was
wont, to the mount of Olives ; and his disciples also
followed him."

O holy mount, happy solitude, consecrated by the
frequent retirement and prayers of the Lamb of God,
by his last preparation for his sacrifice, by his sor-

CHAPTER XXII. 103

rows, his agony, his prostration, his sweat, and his
blood ! Let our faith transport us thither in spirit,
that we may with our heart follow Christ and the
apostles thither, and there adore and contemplate all
that was done for us, that we may reap the fruits,
and beg the spirit thereof, and there unite ourselves
to Jesus Christ, praying for us, and bearing the
punishment of our sins.

" 40. And when he was at jhe place, he said
unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation."

We must not wait until the time of temptation
before we pray, but we must pray before it comes.
Christ prayed that the faith of the apostles might
not fail ; and his prayer was already heard by his
Father : but it was necessary that the apostles like-
wise should pray, to complete in themselves that
which was wanting to the prayer of their Head, ac-
cording to the appointment of God, who had made
their perseverance depend upon their own prayer, as
well as upon that of Christ.

" 41. And he was withdrawn from them about a
stone's cast, and kneeled down, and prayed,"

These circumstances of our blessed Saviour's
prayer are the pattern of a Christian prayer, in afflic-
tion, under the apprehension of danger, and the ex-
pectation of death. In this condition, we must, 1.
Separate ourselves even from our dearest friends, in
order to open our hearts to God alone. 2. We must
humble ourselves internally at least ; and, if we are
able, externally also. — The custom of praying kneel-
ing is derived, not only from the apostles, but from
Jesus Christ himself. Every knee must bow before
the majesty of God, and at the sight of his justice :

104 ST. LUKE.

and nothing shows both more evidently, than to see
the Son of God upon his knees, and prostrate before
his Father. Let us imitate him, and unite ourselves
unto him.

" 42. Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove
this cup from me ; nevertheless, not my will, but
thine, be done."

If we would imitate Christ in his prayer, we must,
3. Lay our condition before God with plainness
and simplicity. 4. We must be full of trust and
confidence. 5. We must speak but little. 6. We
must resign ourselves up to the will of God, and
choose rather to have that done than our own. 7.
We must persevere in praying. — The sacrifice of
our own will is that which God loves the most, and
which ought ever to accompany ail others. The
more holy the will of Christ was, the more innocent
and worthy to be preserved was the life for which he
prays ; and, on this account, the sacrifice which he
makes of it to the will and designs of his Father, is
so much the more worthy of his majesty and holiness.

" 43. And there appeared an angel unto him from
heaven, strengthening him. 44. And, being in an
agony, he prayed more earnestly:"

We must, 8. After the example of Christ, not
reject those external consolations which God sends
us in our troubles. 9. WTe must fight valiantly
against every thing within us which opposes the will
of God. ]0. We must pray the more earnestly,
and redouble our fervency, when the affliction or
temptation is redoubled. — The divine nature, without
separating itself from the human, leaves it to the
weakness common to other men, to the end, that the

CHAPTER XXII. 105

Head may be the consolation of the weakest of his
members, and the instruction of the strongest. Christ
receives assistance from an angel, to teach us to re-
ceive comfort, support, and instruction in our troubles,
even from our inferiors, when God causes us to have
a dependence upon them in that respect. What
relief soever we may receive from the creatures, we
must, notwithstanding, continually have recourse to
the God of all consolation.

" — And his sweat was as it were great drops of
blood falling down to the ground."

To the end that our prayer may be effectual, like
that of Christ, we must, 11. Be prepared to resist
even unto blood in fiuhting against sin. — How ador-
able is this bloody sweat, which the violence of
Christ's grief and sorrow for our sins forces out of
his veins ! The first Adam was condemned to a
common and ordinary sweat : the second, to perform
and finish that penance in a manner truly worthy of
God, endures a sweat which had never any parallel
or example. He submits to the marks of the greatest
weakness, in order to merit for his members the
greatest strength. The most humble ways are those
which Christ still prefers before others. That which
seems to us most unsuitable to his majesty and great-
ness, appears to him most suitable to his love for
God and for his church. Let us adore this blood
shed for us, which falls down to the ground, and
seems to be lost there. O let not the fruit of it at
least be lost as to us !

w 45. And when he rose up from prayer, and was
come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for
sorrow,''

E 3

106 ST. LUKE.

Lastly, In these circumstances of trouble and af-
fliction which oblige us to pray, we must not forget
even the wants of those who are intrusted to our
care. — The disciples receive at present the impression
of Christ's infirmities and sorrows, as it were, by
reflection from him ; they will one day receive the
fruit and the strength procured by them, when the
time of suffering for him is come. Our strength
depends upon the will of God, and not upon the in-
strument of which he makes use to convey it to us.
An angel visits and comforts the Son of God ; the
Son of God himself visits and comforts his apostles :
and yet the latter continue still under their weakness,
whereas the former receives as it were fresh courage.

" 46. And said unto them, Why sleep ye? rise
and pray, lest ye enter into temptation."

It is one fruit of prayer, to be able to encourage
others thereto, and to assist them in it. The ne-
cessity of prayer in temptation, shows us the necessity
of a new grace in order to overcome it. To fall
asleep when we ought to pray, is to yield already to
temptation. And by our not resisting sloth, this
temptation draws on such as are more dangerous, if
we do not wake and rise immediately. It is good
to have a charitable monitor, who may awake us from
our slumber, and encourage us under our dejection.
Be thou mine, O Jesus, as thou wast pleased to be
that of thy apostles.

Sect. VI. — The Kiss of Judas. Malchus. The
Hour of Darkness.

11 47. f And while he yet spake, behold a multi-
tude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve,

CHAPTER XXII. 107

went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss
him."

The impious person, blinded by his audacious
impudence, imagines that God is blind too. To
flatter the consciences of men, and thereby ruin them
eternally, what is this, but to give a kiss like that of
Judas to Christ in the persons of his members? It
is no other than to offer to give one to himself in
person, for a man to go to receive him in the holy
sacrament, with a heart like that of Judas, with a
conscience burdened with deadly sin, and with a
will continually disposed to sin, and ready to deliver
Christ up thereto on the first occasion. It is a most
deplorable disposition, when any one loves these occa-
sions, when he will not withdraw himself from them,
but on the contrary seeks them, and, as much as in
him lies, carries Jesus Christ to them after the commu-
nion. If this be not actually to betray Jesus Christ
with a kiss, it is something which comes very near it.

M 48. But Jesus said unto him, Judas, betrayest
thou the Son of man with a kiss ?"

There is need of a very great degree of virtue,
and of a charity long rooted in the heart, to keep a
man from losing the meekness of his temper in the
midst of the greatest outrages. To bear the deceit-
ful caresses of a false friend, requires more virtue,
than to endure the most violent attacks of a known
and declared enemy. This kindness, this gentle
reproof, this usual familiarity, and this discovery
which he makes of the bottom of this traitor's heart,
make it evident, that nothing external is sufficient
to convert a sinner, if God vouchsafe not to speak
to the heart itself.

108 ST. LUKE.

" 49. When they which were about him saw what
would follow, they said unto him, Lord, shall we
smite with the sword?"

They know Christ but little who are for defend-
ing him by force of arms. He is very far from de-
siring to save his own life by exposing that of others,
since he came on purpose to shed his blood, and to
die for all mankind. This question of the apostles
is a sign of their doubtfulness, and at the same time
of their ignorance, as to the designs of God concern-
ing his Son, in which they had been so often in-
structed : but this ignorance does not excuse Peter;
and this doubtfulness condemns him. There are
abundance of persons in the world, who, like Peter,
consult God, and yet suffer themselves to be hurried
away by their passion or their false zeal, before they
know his will.

" 50. % And one of them smote a servant of the
high priest, and cut off his right ear."

The blind and indiscreet will, which is not guided
by the will of the eternal wisdom, exposes itself so
much the more to offend God, the more ready and
eager it is to follow its own violent motion, even in
seeking to serve him.

" 51. And Jesus answered and said, Suffer ye
thus far. And he touched his ear, and healed him."

Jesus permits evil, in order only to bring out of
it a greater good. He teaches us to return good
for evil. The Spirit of Christ and of his true dis-
ciples does not allow private persons to repel by
force any violence, authorized by the name of lawful
magistrates, how unjust soever it may be. Private
revenge and public rebellion are things unknown to

CHAPTER XXII. 109

true Christians, who count it their glory rather to
lose their own lives than to take away those of other
men. The only miracle which appears not to have
been asked of Christ, is this in favour of an enemy
and an unjust aggressor; and he works it, not to
deliver himself, but by the sole motive of his own
inclination and charity.

" 52. Then Jesus said unto the chief priests, and
captains of the temple, and the elders, which were
come to him, Be ye come out, as against a thief, with
swords and staves ?"

The reason why Christ is treated as a thief, is be-
cause sinners are really such, in robbing God of his
glory, and of every thing which they owe him. The
best of persons are more sensibly affected by the ill
usage which wounds their reputation and honour,
(this usage being most proper for thieves,) than they
are by any other kind of injustice. It is in order to
secure us from that excess to which this sense of hu-
man honour is apt to carry us, that Christ is willing
to be treated as a thief, even he who has divested
himself of all, and who is now just going to lay down
his life.

" 53. When I was daily with you in the temple,
ye stretched forth no hands against me : but this is
your hour, and the power of darkness."

Christ determines the hour of his death, as a vo-
luntary victim, who offers himself, not out of neces-
sity, but out of choice and love. Such is the blind-
ness of sinners, who think they reign and triumph
when they accomplish their wicked desires; whereas
they are only the instruments of the devil, who makes
them serve his designs, as the devil is himself an instru-

110 ST. LUKE.

ment whom God makes subservient to his. This is,
in truth, much more thy hour, O Jesus, than that of
these impious wretches; the hour of thy great work,
to which thou makest both the power of darkness, and
the malice of men, subservient and instrumental.

Sect. VII. — Christ led to Caiaphas. The Denial
and Mepenta?ice of Peter.

" 54. 5[ Then took they him, and led him, and
brought him into the high priest's house. And
Peter followed afar off."

O Jesus ! made a captive on purpose to deliver
captives ! break the chains of my sinful habits, by
that invisible power which cannot be bound or con-
fined by men ! Let this captivity, which expiates all
the ill use of the corrupt freedom of my will, and
merits for me the cure, deliverance, and good use
thereof, be the object of my religion, my gratitude,
and my love.

" 55. And when they had kindled a fire in the
midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter
sat down among them."

He who loves danger, and takes no care to avoid
the occasions of sin, runs the hazard of perishing
eternally. It is infinitely better for a man humbly
to retire, acknowledging his weakness, and having
recourse to Him who is the strength of the weak,
till he vouchsafe to show him mercy, than wilfully to
persist in performing a presumptuous promise, by
endeavours which are still more presumptuous. The
stronger we would fain appear, out of a confidence
merely human, the more destitute are we of the
strength of God.

CHAPTER XXII. Ill

" 56. But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by
the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said,
This man was also with him."

Every enemy is formidable to a person not sup-
ported by God. An occasion which we entirely dis-
regard, is sometimes very fatal to our virtue. If
every thing be dangerous to us when we do not dis-
trust ourselves, how much more is it so when we are
possessed with an opinion of our own strength ! Pe-
ter was extremely desirous to distinguish himself from
the rest of the apostles, who humbly laid hold of the
permission which Christ gave them to flee, intimated
by those words, " Let these go their way," (John
xviii. 8.) : but he distinguishes himself from them by
nothing but a most shameful fall.

" 57. And he denied him, saying, Woman, I
know him not."

This denial of which Peter is guilty, is a dreadful
example of human infirmity. The love of life and
the fear of death make men forget the best resolu-
tions, when they have not been formed by God, and
are not supported by an humble prayer. One of the
chiefest of the pastors, overcome thus by a servant
maid at the very first blow, warns us to be upon our
guard against every thing, especially in a place and
company to which neither our vocation nor our duty
calls us.

" 58. And, after a little while, another saw him,
and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said,
Man, I am not."

One sin hardens the heart, and disposes it for the
commission of another. God permits Peter to fall
more than once, that he may have no room to excuse

112 ST. LUKE.

his sin, as proceeding from surprise; and that he may
seek the cause thereof in his own presumption. Such
a one is surprised at the cowardice of Peter, who,
upon a hundred occasions, wherein his duty obliges
him to declare for the innocent, says, either by his
words or his actions, " I am not of them."

" 59. And about the space of one hour after,
another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this
fellow also was with him : for he is a Galilean."

One temptation, when not resisted, draws on an-
other. The space of one hour is allowed Peter to
recover himself, and he makes no use of it: in vain
God gives men time for repentance, if he do not
give them likewise a penitent heart. The patience
of God serves only to harden the sinner, when it is
not accompanied with the internal operation of grace.
Without this, it is both ineffectual towards his re-
, covery, and frequently the occasion of a new fall.

" 60. And Peter said, Man, I know not what
thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake,
the cock crew."

Let us not be weary of considering the deplorable
infidelity of the heart of man when left to himself.
These three falls are, as it were, three witnesses of
human weakness; and show plainly, that none but
God knows perfectly how great it is. He permitted
these falls in one of the chiefest of the pastors, to
the end, that all the sheep may behold in him, what
they are of themselves, and what they are by grace.

" 61. And the Lord turned, and looked upon
Peter : and Peter remembered the word of the Lord,
how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow,
thou shalt deny me thrice."

CHAPTER XXII. 113

How powerful is the internal look of Christ !
Without it, nothing external can convert. With
it, even the hardest hearts melt into tears. The
cock had crowed, and yet Peter did not recollect
himself, because Jesus had not yet looked upon him.
He casts but one look of mercy upon this sinner,
and his heart is pierced with grief. O turn not away
from mine, O Lord, those eyes of mercy, on which
my salvation and eternal happiness depend.

" 62. And Peter went out, and wept bitterly."
All that we know of this apostle's repentance is,
that he immediately quitted the occasion of his fall-
ing, that he lamented his fall, and lamented it bit-
terly. All the rest follows a true sorrow, and a true
hatred of sin; because these can proceed from no-
thing but a love to God, and this love pardons itself
nothing, and spares nothing to please him. It is
always a time to weep, because it is always a time to
love : but it is not always a proper time to endeavour
to make satisfaction for our sin in the sight of men.
We must sometimes wait for a fit opportunity, as
Peter did.

Sect. VI II. — Christ Mocked, Abased, and Con-

demned.

" 63. il And the men that held Jesus mocked
him, and smote him."

God becomes the sport of his creatures; and he
is pleased to endure it, to merit for us the grace to
bear contempt with patience. Can the sinner suffer
himself to be carried out into resentment, complaints,
and revenge, when he beholds his Saviour and his
God, innocence and holiness itself, in these circum-

114 ST. LUKE.

stances, retaining the meekness of a lamb, who could
have lifted up his voice like a lion, and crushed all
his enemies by the sole motion of his will?

" 64. And when they had blindfolded him, they
struck him on the face, and asked him, saying, Pro-
phesy, who is it that smote thee?"

Christ is willing to be deprived of the use of his
bodily eyes, to open those of our mind. His divine
sight is exposed to mockery and contempt, to expiate
the abuse which human pride makes of knowledge.
These soldiers insult and abuse the Son of God, but
without knowing him : and Christians affront the
God whom they know, as audaciously as if he were
blindfolded, and could only guess at those who insult
him. Thou seest every thing, O my God; and the
very bottom of all hearts is known to thee. Cause
me, therefore, to do every thing as under thy imme-
diate inspection, and in thy presence.

" 65. And many other things blasphemously spake
they against him."

Christ suffers these abuses and blasphemies to
atone for ours. Grant, Lord, that I may forget all
occasions of complaint which relate to myself, and
employ my thoughts wholly upon the contempts and
abuses which thou wast pleased to undergo for my
sake. Thou sanctifiest these things by enduring
them in thy divine person, thou makest of them a
sacrifice to thy Father, a pattern of patience and hu-
mility for me, and a fountain of grace for thy whole
church. Grant me, I beseech thee, the grace to
adore this divine object, to offer this sacrifice, to
imitate this pattern, and to draw continually from
this fountain-head.

CHAPTER XXII. 115

" 66. 51 And as soon as it was day, the elders of
the people, and the chief priests, and the scribes,
came together, and led him into their council,
67. Saying, Art thou the Christ? tell us."

Authority, sacerdotal dignity, and learning, with-
out grace, serve often to destroy Christ and his
church, whereas they ought to contribute solely to
the establishment of his kingdom therein. If these
men had been willing to have believed, they should
have asked the prophecies concerning Christ, and
the miracles which he had wrought ; and these would
have answered for him, that he was the only Son of
God. But they would fain induce him to speak
with no other design but to destroy him. Preserve
me, Lord, from being ever guilty of so heinous an
outrage : grant, that I may never ask thee any thing,
O eternal Truth, but only in order to follow and obey
thee.

" — And he said unto them, If I tell you, ye
will not believe : 68. And if I also ask you, ye will
not answer me, nor let me go."

Let us here learn of the Son of God, to show
always modesty and respect towards our superiors,
how unjust soever they may be. We ought to be
very reserved in the discovery of truths, when men
are not well disposed to hear them ; that we may pre-
vent their being contemned, and the other ill uses the
wicked are apt to make of them, as much as we can.

" 69. Hereafter shall the Son of man sit on the
right hand of the power of God."

Christ is faithful to his ministry to the very last,
in declaring to those who are going to put him to
death, the power of that state wherein his resurrec-

116 ST. LUKE.

tion would place him. He preaches indeed to the
deaf, but he instructs his church, and honours the
truth, by bearing witness to it, before the enemies
thereof and his own judges. He does not in the
least insult them, by threatening them with his power :
he only declares to them, that, instead of that mortal
life they are going to take from him, he shall receive
a new one, full of power and glory.

44 70. Then said they all, Art thou then the Son
of God ? And he said unto them, Ye say that 1
am."

The incarnation and resurrection of the Son of
God being the fundamental mysteries of the Chris-
tian religion, which were to make so many martyrs,
it was necessary that Jesus Christ, as the head of
them, should be himself a martyr for those truths.
He knew very well that they would cost him his life :
but he knew likewise, that life is a debt which all men
owe to the truth, and that to sacrifice it to God is
not to lose it.

" 71. And they said, What need we any further
witness? for we ourselves have heard of his own
mouth."

How different is the joy of these men, upon hear-
ing the truth out of the mouth of Christ, from that
of his true disciples ! These find therein the words
of eternal life; but those convert it into words of
death, both for Christ and themselves, by the abuse
they make of it. Preserve me, Lord, I beseech thee,
from abusing it; for without thv grace I can do no-
thing else.

CHAPTER XXIII. 117

CHAPTER XXIII.

Sect. I. — Christ accused before Pilate.

" 1. And the whole multitude of them arose, and
led him unto Pilate. 2. And they began to accuse
him, saying, We found this fellow perverting the
nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Cesar, say-
ing, that he himself is Christ a King."

Christ, who was accused of blasphemy against
God, of treason against Cesar, and of sowing sedition
among the people, affords those abundance of consola-
tion who suffer under calumny, and admonishes judges
and princes not to give credit to it very easily. There
is certainly no conduct or behaviour in the world,
how upright and innocent soever which it may be,
can secure a man from accusations of this nature,
since that of Christ could not secure him from them.

" 3. And Pilate asked him, saying, Art thou the
King of the Jews? And he answered him and said,
Thou say est it."

Christ is still willing to he called the Kins of this
people, though they are so disloyal and ungrateful to
him as to solicit his death. Let men do all they
can to shake off the yoke of Christ's sovereignty, yet
he will ever preserve his rights. He exercises his
power over all men, either in punishing, or in chang-
ing their rebellious wills. Grant, O Jesus, that I
may be the subject of thy mercy and grace: vouch-
safe to reign in my heart by thy love.

" 4. Then said Pilate to the chief priests and to
the people, I find no fault in this man."

118 ST. LUKE.

A judge who is neither corrupted nor prepossessed,
finds it not at all difficult to discover innocence in the
midst of calumnies. Let us to our shame acknow-
ledge, that there is often more equity and integrity
to be found in a layman, and even in a heathen, than
in a Christian, or a clergyman who is blinded by
envy or interest. It is something, indeed, for a
judge not to suppress and stifle the knowledge which
he has of innocence : but he becomes the more guilty
upon this account, if he abandons the defence of it,
and delivers it up to its enemies.

" 5. And they were the more fierce, saying, He
stirreth up the people, teaching throughout all Jewry,
beginning from Galilee to this place."

The peaceable doctrine of Jesus Christ, repre-
sented as seditious, is matter of comfort and consola-
tion to those evangelical preachers who are aspersed.
It is the common artifice of those whose bad doctrine
or hypocrisy is discovered and laid open by others, to
decry their accusers as turbulent and seditious per-
sons. To hinder such false teachers from corrupt-
ing every thing by their pernicious maxims and
calumnies, is, if you will believe them, to trouble the
consciences of men, and to disturb the peace of church
and state.

Sect. II. — Christ sent to Herod.

" 6. When Pilate heard of Galilee, he asked
whether the man were a Galilean. 7. And as soon
as he knew that he belonged unto Herod's jurisdic-
tion, he sent him to Herod, who himself also was at
Jerusalem at that time."

How many Christians are there, who, like Pilate,

CHAPTER XXIII. 119

make Christ subservient to their temporal affairs and
designs ! What will not a judge do, rather than let
a cause go out of his hands, from which he hopes to
reap advantage ! On the contrary, a man endeavours
to clear his hands of any cause, when he has so much
honour as to be unwilling to betray innocence, but
has not courage enough to defend it, to the hazard
of his fortune, or of losing the friendship of the great.
Christ never went to court of his own accord : he is
led thither. And he appears there in bonds, to sig-
nify to us, that truth is there seldom free from cap-
tivity and insults.

" 8. 51 And when Herod saw Jesus, he was ex-
ceeding glad : for he was desirous to see him of a
long season, because he had heard many things of
him; and he hoped to have seen some miracle done
by him."

Thus many people of the world learn the truths
of Christianity with a joy arising only from curiosity,
and not from any desire of being instructed in them,
and of putting them in practice. Christ makes every
thing instrumental to the accomplishment of his de-
signs. Herod's curiosity gives our blessed Saviour
an opportunity to increase the number both of his
humiliations, and of the witnesses of his innocence,
and likewise to draw from the mouth even of a Jewish
king the condemnation of the Jews. The great men
of the world always want some new sight for their
entertainment and diversion. This was all the use
which Herod and his court made of Christ.

" 9. Then he questioned with him in many words;
but'he answered him nothing."

Christ hears not those who seek him only out of

120 ST. LUKE.

curiosity. The curiosity of men of corrupt minds,
with regard to mysteries, is much to be suspected ;
and we should not amuse ourselves in endeavouring
to give them satisfaction. It is difficult for a man
to come off with advantage, when he engages in dis-
course concerning religion with persons who have no
more than what human policy gives them. A re-
spectful silence is an instruction for some, and a re-
fuge against others. That person says a great deal
who speaks by his modesty, his humility, and his
patience.

" 10. And the chief priests and scribes stood, and
vehemently accused him."

Corrupt priests and teachers are generally the most
implacable enemies of Christ and of the truth. The
passions betray those who are slaves to them. An
afFected moderation would have rendered these ac-
cusers less suspected, their accusations more proba-
ble, and their envy less visible, than this vehemence ;
but envy seldom or never consults prudence. And
God permits this to be so for the honour of truth and
innocence.

<; 11. And Herod with his men of war set him at
nought, and mocked him, and arrayed him in a gor-
geous robe, and sent him again to Pilate."

The curiosity of those who apply themselves to
the reading of the holy Scripture and to religion
only through this spirit, is most commonly turned
into contempt — contempt produces libertinism, this
leads to atheism, and atheism to damnation. There
are scarce any places to be found in the gospel, where-
in we do not learn of Christ, that it is the lot and
portion of true Christians, as well as of their Head, to

CHAPTER XXIII. 121

be contemned and despised by the world. It is not
in the courts of princes that faith and a reverence
for holy things are most conspicuous. It is not from
carnal men that we can ever learn how much silence
and humility are to be esteemed, since they look upon
these things as no better than folly.

" 12. 51 And the same day Pilate and Herod were
made friends together ; for before they were at en-
mity between themselves."

Irreligious men and heretics, though ever so oppo-
site to one another, frequently unite together against
Christ, his truth, and his church. Worldly inter-
est divides carnal men, and worldly interest makes
them friends again; but religion rather suffers than
gains by this reconcilement. In a very little time,
O Jesus, thy death will reconcile and unite together,
not only a Gentile and a Jew, but Jews and Gentiles,
by one and the same faith, in one and the same body,
and under one and the same Head.

Sect. III. — Barabbas preferred to Christ.

" 13. f And Pilate, when he had called together
the chief priests, and the rulers, and the people,
14. Said unto them, Ye have brought this man unto
me, as one that perverteth the people ; and, behold,
I, having examined him before you, have found no
fault in this man touching those things whereof ye
accuse him: 15. No, nor yet Herod: for I sent
you to him ; and, lo, nothing worthy of death is
done unto him."

God is pleased to make use of all sorts of means
to manifest the innocency of his Son, as he does to
cause his truth to triumph, and to enlarge his church.
Vol. III. F 57

122 ST. LUKE.

Pilate, who here strongly insists upon the conduct of
Herod as an argument in favour of Christ, will cer-
tainly condemn those Christian judges who do not
hold out in defence of calumniated innocence even so
long as this heathen. But this heathen condemns
himself, in declaring Christ innocent of that very
crime against the state for which he is just going to
deliver him up to be crucified. That man is in a
very miserable condition indeed, who is not at all the
better even for that little good which he does amongst
abundance of evil.

" 16. I will therefore chastise him, and release
him. 17. (For of necessity he must release one unto
them at the feast.)"

If Christ be guilty, why should he be released ?
If he be innocent, why should he be chastised ? We
see here a representation of the corrupt management
of a judge who would fain please every body, instead
of having regard to justice alone. For a man to
expose it to suffering, at the same time that he knows
and publishes it, is to dishonour and disgrace it : as if
it did not deserve to have every thing sacrificed for
its sake.

*f 18. And they cried out all at once, saying,
Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas :"

There is nothing in the world which the wicked
man will not prefer before truth in order to satisfy
his passion. How false is the judgment of the
world ! Who can have any regard for it after that
which it passes upon Jesus Christ? Let us judge
of the injury here done to Christ, by our own dispo-
sition and resentment, when we are placed beneath
some contemptible person. Let us be ashamed of

CHAPTER XXIII. 123

being so apt to complain of unjust preferences. Can
quarrels, revenge, and deadly hatred, arising from
disputes about rank and punctilios of honour, sub-
sist any longer after such an example ?

" 19. (Who for a certain sedition made in the
city, and for murder, was cast into prison.)"

To what degree does not the Son of God abase
himself? A robber preferred before the Saviour of
the world, a seditious villain before the Prince of
peace, and a murderer before the Author of life, to
purchase for us salvation, peace, and life eternal.
These wretches make a great outcry concerning the
public good, the rights of the prince, and the royal
prerogative, in order to oppress our blessed Saviour :
but they entirely forget and neglect all this in begging
the releasement of a seditious person, and an enemy
to peace and the public good. Thou seest, Lord,
the corruption of man's heart. Since it is in order
to cure this heart that thou art pleased to bear the
effects of its corruption, vouchsafe to apply this re-
medy to mine.

" 20. Pilate therefore, willing to release Jesus,
spake again to them."

The voice of our sins, which requires the death
of Christ, is more strong and prevalent than that of
Pilate, which intercedes for his life. The world is
full of these imperfect good wills, which never pro-
ceed to execution, and which serve only to render
sinners more inexcusable, because they sin with
knowledge and a full sight of their duty. Give us,
Lord, an active and efficacious will to perform our
duty : and abandon us not to the weakness of our
own desires.

f2

124- ST. LUKE.

" 21. But they cried, saying, Crucify him, cru-
cify him."

See here the inconstancy of the friendship of the
world ! The very same persons, but six days ago,
cried out, " Hosannah to the Son of David," who
now cry out, " Crucify him, crucify him." What
a strange forgetfulness was here of so many benefits !
What strange ingratitude was this in a people who
had been eye-witnesses of so many miracles ! But
how great the goodness and charity of Christ, who
foresaw all this ingratitude at the very time when he
heaped his blessings upon them; and who loses no-
thing of his meekness even now, when they demand
his death.

" 22. And he said unto them the third time, Why ?
what evil hath he done ? I have found no cause of
death in him : I will therefore chastise him, and let
him go."

Strange condition this of the Son of God, given
up by the justice of his Father to the discretion of
his creatures ! He meets with no good will but in
his judge, and this has no other effect but to make
him suffer the more. How often has he turned into
good the evil which men were contriving against us?
And the justice of God permits that very good which
Pilate designed to do him, to be turned to his dis-
advantage.

" 23. And they were instant with loud voices,
requiring that he might be crucified : and the voices
of them and of the chief priests prevailed."

The confederacy and clamour of the wicked often
prevail against the reasons of those who speak in
behalf of truth and justice. Injustice and envy

CHAPTER XXIII. 125

have more perseverance in their wicked designs, than
the good intention of Pilate has in endeavouring to
save Jesus Christ. In the perverse and stubborn
wills of these hardened wretches, I plainly perceive
what mine would certainly be, if thou, Lord, shouldst
abandon it to its own natural obduracy.

Sect. IV. — Christ delivered up to the Jews. Simon
the Ci/renian. The Daughters of Jerusalem.

" 24. And Pilate gave sentence that it should be
as they required. 25. % And he released unto them
him that for sedition and murder was cast into prison,
whom they had desired ; but he delivered Jesus to
their will."

He who loves any thing more than truth, will
abandon it sooner or later. Christ is delivered up
to the will of man, that man may deliver himself up
to the will of Christ through his grace. Lord, I
see myself in this criminal as in a glass; thou takest
my place in taking his, and in setting him at liberty
by thy death. O may thy Father see and own me
in thee ! Grant that he may behold me covered
with thy blood, nailed to thy cross, and obedient even
unto death, like one of his children, like one of thy
members !

" 26. And as they led him away, they laid hold
upon one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the
country, and on him they laid the cross, that he might
bear it after Jesus."

God never leaves any person alone who bears his
cross for the sake of him. It is a great favour to
be chosen of God to accompany an afflicted soul,
and to keep it from sinking under the burden of its

126 ST. LUKE.

cross. Nothing affords greater consolation to one
who feels the weight of it, and fortifies him more,
than the example of another who bears it with con-
stancy and courage. Lord, abandon not those whom
the world crucifies for defending thy cause — give
them that strength, consolation, and support, of which
they stand in need !

w 27. 51 And there followed him a great company
of people, and of women, which also bewailed and
lamented him."

Happy that person, who follows Christ bearing
his cross, who compassionates his pains, and sheds
tears over him ! We see here none but the meaner
sort of people touched with compassion for Christ,
and bearing him company while he carries his cross.
All the rest, the king of the Jews, the Roman gover-
nor, the high priest, the chief priests, doctors of the
law, scribes, and soldiers, all these concern them-
selves no otherwise about Christ than only to con-
tribute to his sufferings. That compassion which
shows itself by outward expressions, is not the most
perfect; but the simplicity and sincerity of those souls
who thus take part in the pains and sorrows of the
Son of God, supplies what is defective in them. God
assembles together about Christ, as he carries his
cross, the pious souls which were in Jerusalem, on
purpose that they may reap the fruits of this painful
journey of Christ, of the example of this adorable
victim loaded with the wood of his sacrifice, and like-
wise of the instructions which this dying Saviour has
yet to give them.

" 28. But Jesus, turning unto them, said, Daugh-
ters of Jerusalem, weep not for me, but weep for
yourselves, and for your children."

CHAPTER XXIII. 127

At the court Christ kept a perfect silence : he
vouchsafed not to honour king Herod with so much
as one word ; and he here speaks in public to the
meanest of the people. How ought this preference
to humble the great ! How ought it to comfort
those, whom they generally look upon as mere worms
of the earth, unworthy of their notice, but whom
Christ thinks worthy of his notice, his acknowledg-
ment, and his last instructions ! One of the fruits
of our applying our minds to the contemplation of
Christ's sufferings, and raising in ourselves a com-
passion for them, is to receive instruction concerning
those crosses and afflictions which will in all proba-
bility happen to us, to prepare ourselves to bear them
like Christians, and to enter into the spirit of repen-
tance for our sins. In vain do we weep for Christ,
if we do not weep for ourselves, when we consider
the justice of God. A man must have a heart as
good as that of this good Shepherd, to forget the
evils which he suffers himself, and to be mindful of
those of others, though as yet at a great distance.
This ungrateful city cannot be blotted out of his
mind to his very last breath. How terrible an ex-
ample is this against the revengeful !

" 29. Fors behold, the days are coming, in the
which they shall say, Blessed are the barren, and the
wombs that never bare, and the paps which never
gave suck."

We have not indeed any reason to fear those very
evils which were to happen at the siege and destruction
of Jerusalem ; and yet these words are directed likewise
to us, because these calamities prefigure those of the
damned, who shall seek death without being able to

128 ST. LUKE.

find it, and shall suffer an eternal confusion. No-
thing but repentance can prevent these miseries. It
is a very great mercy, that Christ vouchsafes thus to
warn and persuade us to avoid the wrath of God ;
but it is a very great misery, and a most deplorable
blindness in men, to receive no manner of advantage
from it, by continuing still in impenitence. Every
sinner ought to apply to himself in particular this
general admonition.

" 30. Then shall they begin to say to the moun-
tains, Fall on us ; and to the hills, Cover us."

Thus an insupportable confusion shall fall on all
those who have been ashamed to perform the duty
of repentance. All desires to escape the wrath of
God will be altogether fruitless and ineffectual, when
the time of mercy is past. The state and condition
of a person who dies without any repentance, or with
one which is late, imperfect, and doubtful, has some-
thing in it very dreadful : but how much more dread-
ful will it be, when he finds himself at the tribunal
of his Judge, without any other refuge than these
wishes of despair ! Let us prevent them by an effi-
cacious will; and let us earnestly beg this will of
God. Let us hide ourselves in the holes of the
rock, in the wounds of Jesus Christ, while they con-
tinue open to us.

"31. For if they do these things in a green tree,
what shall be done in the dry?"

If Christ, the tree of life, full of the juice of grace,
truth, and righteousness, is treated with so much
rigour for the sins of men, let us not wonder to see
the most holy persons suffer in this life. What have
not the wicked to fear, who are no other than dry

CHAPTER XXIII. 129

and barren branches, cut off from the stock, when
they see holiness itself overwhelmed with sorrows and
afflictions ? It is only at the foot of the cross, that
we can frame true ideas of the justice and anger of
God. All that we see besides is no more than a
shadow of them.

" 32. 51 And there were also two others, male-
factors, led with him to be put to death."

My God, into what company hast thou brought
that Son, who lives and reigns eternally with thee,
in the society and unity of the Holy Spirit ! By
this thou art pleased to comfort those, who, being
oppressed by the calumnies and injustice of men, are
confined to the company of malefactors, in a dungeon,
in the galleys, and perhaps on a scaffold. Cause
them, O my God, by the perception of a lively faith,
to be sensible of the consolation arising from the
conformity of their state with that of thy beloved
Son.

Sect. V. — Christ crucified and insulted. The Title
on the Cross.

" 33. And when they were come to the place
which is called Calvary, there they crucified him,
and the malefactors; one on the right hand, and the
other on the left."

Christ, in submitting to the punishment of slaves,
joins the greatest of ignominies with the most vio-
lent of all pains, that nothing may be wanting to the
example of patience and humility which he intends
to give us in his death, and to the remedy which he
prepares thereby for the cure of all our wounds. Ap-
ply this remedy to me, O adorable Physician ! Cause

f 3

130 ST. LUKE.

me to imitate this example, and vouchsafe to imprint
thyself in my soul as my pattern, O thou Head of
the truly humble and the truly penitent !

" 34. 51 Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them;
for they know not what they do."

These are adorable words of the oblation of the
grand sacrifice of Christ, spoken by him whilst they
were nailing him to the cross, where this new Priest,
laid upon this new altar, offers himself as a victim
for the ignorances of the people. If a God must
die, it must be out of an excess of love, and carry-
ing it to its highest perfection, in offering his blood
for those who shed it, in making himself the media-
tor and advocate of sinners, and in interceding for
grace and salvation for his enemies and executioners.
He dies as the martyr of his own divinity, confessing
and sealing with his blood this fundamental truth of
the Christian religion, which has made so many mar-
tyrs, namely, that he was truly the Son of God,
which he declares by using the term, " Father."
Settle and establish in thy church, O Lord, this
double foundation of its faith and morality — thy
divinity and thy love — against the new enemies of
both. If these men sin out of ignorance, this does
not excuse them, any more than it does thy execu-
tioners ; but it renders them however more worthy
of compassion, through the extremity of their mis-
fortune.

" — And they parted his raiment, and cast lots."

That which is done here by the avarice of these
soldiers, was guided and directed by the same Spirit
who had foretold it; to give the greater authority to
these mysteries by the completion of the least cir-

CHAPTER XXIII. 131

cumstances. Lord, thou abandonest and givest up
to thy executioners these garments, made by the
hands of men ; but thou leavest us garments far more
precious than these, since thou vouchsafest to clothe
us with thyself in baptism, and to give us thy virtues,
mysteries, grace, and holy Spirit, to cover the naked-
ness of our heart. Grant, O Jesus, that we may be
always clothed therewith, both within and without.

" 35. 51 And the people stood beholding : and the
rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved
others ; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the
chosen of God."

As long as this life lasts, the righteous continue
exposed to the insults of the world : and, what is
worse, it does what it can to rob them of their trust
and confidence in God, and to cause them to mur-
mur against his Providence. Our churches are to
us instead of Calvary; our altars, instead of the
cross ; and the eucharistical sacrifice, instead of the
sacrifice of the death of Christ, of which it is the
most lively representation. Would to God, that
those who here made of the mystery of the cross
only a spectacle of curiosity, and an occasion of dis-
honouring Jesus Christ, had not still imitators in
these days ! I adore thee, O Jesus, both upon the
cross, and when I approach the altar, as the Saviour,
who hast delivered us from our sins; as the Christ,
who pourest upon us of the fulness of the unction of
thy Spirit and thy grace ; and as the only chosen of
God, in whom all the rest are elected, sanctified, and
glorified as his members.

" 36. And the soldiers also mocked him, coming
to him, and offering him vinegar,"

132 ST. LUKE.

See here the comforters whom Christ finds o-a
earth, in the clay of his sufferings, and in the ex-
tremity of his sharpest pains ! He thirsts, and no
man offers him so much as one drop of water ! They
give him vinegar, while sinners gratify their taste
with the most delicious liquors. Lord, apply to our
sensuality the remedy which thou preparedst for it
by this particular suffering !

" 37. And saying, If thou be the king of the
Jews, save thyself."

O my God, how true is it, that carnal men can-
not comprehend the dispensations of thy wisdom and
thy Spirit ! Jesus is the king of the Jews, in reign-
ing by his grace not over Jews according to the
flesh and the letter, but over Jews according to the
Spirit and the truth ; and this grace is the fruit of
his cross and death. It is by dying that he establishes
his kingdom, gains his people, and saves them. Let
this be to the Jews a stumbling-block, and to the
Gentiles foolishness — it shall ever be the object of
my adoration, my gratitude, my hope, and my love !

" 38. And a superscription also was written over
him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew,

THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS."

Pilate, from being the judge of Christ, seems to
become his first apostle to the Greeks, Romans, and
Hebrews, publishing to them his reign upon and by
the cross. It is just, O Jesus, that every tongue
should confess that thou art a king upon the cross, as
well as in thy glory, until the time come when every
knee shall bow at thy adorable name. Give me that
reverence, obedience, religion, gratitude, and love,
which I owe thee in this quality and this state of

CHAPTER XXIII. 133

suffering. Let my submission to whatever afflictions
may befall me for thy sake, or by thy appointment,
be to me a pledge and assurance of my fidelity towards
thee, O my crucified King !

Sect. VI. — The penitent Tliief.

" 39. % And one of the malefactors, which were
hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ,
save thyself and us."

Dismal and irrecoverable estate indeed, when even
the last punishments of sin do not open the sinner's
eyes ! Let us adore the justice of God, and his
judgments upon sinners. He who suffers blasphem-
ing God, without faith, hope, and submission, suffers
as a reprobate. It is a favour to be punished in this
life, when a man knows how to make a good use of
his sufferings ; but how rarely is this grace to be
found ! Whoever suffers altogether by constraint,
both without accepting of his sufferings in the spirit
of repentance, and without the benediction or unction
of the Spirit of God, suffers doubly, without comfort,
and without benefit. Miserable is he who makes
this choice !

" 40. But the other, answering, rebuked him, say-
ing, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the
same condemnation ? 41. And we indeed justly ;
for we receive the due reward of our deeds : but this
man hath done nothing amiss. 42. And he said
unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest
into thy kingdom."

The elect, by accepting their cross, suffer abun-
dantly the less, are comforted by God himself, and
receive an infinite reward. The penitent thief is the

134 ST. LUKE.

first confessor of Christ's heavenly kingdom, the first
martyr who bore testimony to the holiness of his
sufferings, and the first apologist for his oppressed
innocence. He consecrates to Christ whatever he
has at liberty — his heart to believe in him, and his
tongue to confess him. The first fruit of faith in a
penitent punished for his sins, is, to consider the
difference there is betwixt the sufferings of Christ,
entirely innocent, and those of sinners. The second
is, to acknowledge that he himself suffers justly.
The third is, to have compassion on those who lose
all the fruit of their sufferings by receiving them ill,
and to exhort them to repentance. The fourth is,
not to be offended or scandalized at the humiliations
of Christ. The fifth, to expect his eternal king-
dom. The sixth, to pray humbly to him. And the
seventh, to have no other ambition than to be re-
membered by him, for his memory is his heart ; and
all is well when we have a place therein.

" 43. And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto
thee, To-day shalt thou be with me in paradise."

Let us admire how exceedingly God comforts
true penitents at the time of death by a lively hope.
Whoever perseveres united in heart to Christ in his
sufferings, shall be united to him in his glory. One
sinner is converted at the hour of death, that we may
hope — and but one, that we may fear ! Christ, the
sovereign dispenser of his own grace and glory, gives
it to a thief at the last moment of his life, to show
us that he does not give it to merit. The bounty
of God surpasses the utmost hopes of true penitents.
The person before us here begged only to be M re-
membered," without presuming to mention a word

CHAPTER XXIII. 135

relating either to time, or to any thing else ; and
Jesus promises hira heavenly repose, the joy of pos-
sessing it together with himself, and the enjoyment
of it that very day. What sinner will not be attracted
by a goodness so bountiful, preventing, and divine !

Sect. VII. — Darkness. The Death of Christ. The
Centurion. The holy Women. Joseph. Christ's
Burial.

" 44. 51 And it was about the sixth hour, and
there was darkness over all the earth until the ninth
hour."

How much thicker was the darkness which covered
the hearts of the Jews, since they did not per-
ceive by this miracle, that they had crucified their
King and their God ! Let it admonish us at least
to return the humblest thanks to Christ, for having
merited for us, by his death, the light of faith, and
the grace of his covenant.

"" 45. And the sun was darkened, and the vail
of the temple was rent in the midst."

God speaks even yet by inanimate creatures to
this obdurate people, who refused to hear his son.
He makes use of every thing to awaken the sinner;
but the sinner, by his obduracy, renders every thing
ineffectual, when God works not an internal and in-
visible miracle upon his heart. How is it, that they
do not now at least know, that it is the Sun of their
souls, whose light and life they have extinguished
and put out, and that his death rends the vail of
types and shadows, discovers the truth, and opens
heaven ! But the time is not yet come.

" 46. % And when Jesus had cried with a loud

136 ST. LUKE.

voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my
spirit : and having said thus, he gave up the ghost."

The cry of Jesus shows the reality of his human
nature, the extremity of his pains, and the ingrati-
tude of men. This is the cry of the true Abel,
whose blood intercedes for mercy towards sinners.
One fruit of these last words is, to teach us to resign
ourselves up willingly to God as our Father, at the
time of death, after the example of Jesus Christ.
He lays down his life of himself, as a voluntary vic-
tim. Let us learn, in imitating him, to be always
ready freely to sacrifice our own. As the true wheat
of the elect, he dies here on earth, in order to bring
forth much fruit in heaven. How large a field of
meditation does every one of these last words afford
us ! How much is there in them to be adored and
imitated ! How many other duties are we obliged
to perform towards a God, who dies for us such a
death, and by such a love !

" 47. ^[ Now, when the centurion saw what was
done, he glorified God, saying, Certainly this was
a righteous man."

The first-fruits of the death of Christ, are not for
a priest, a doctor of the law, a Pharisee, or for any
Jew, but for a Gentile, a soldier, who was present
at it merely by the duty of his post. How far are
thy judgments, O my God, above the reach of our
understandings ! The Jewish priests, notwithstand-
ing all the helps they had from the law and the pro-
phets, from the miracles and preaching of Christ,
could see nothing of his holiness ; and thy mercy
supplies the want of all those things in the heart of
this centurion, and causes him to know and confess

CHAPTER XXIII. 137

the Saviour of the world. Let us adore these judg-
ments of God, his justice towards some, and his mercy
towards others.

" 48. And all the people that came together to
that sight, beholding the things which were done,
smote their breasts, and returned."

The second graces are for the common and illi-
terate people, who were not so much set against
Christ, and had not contributed to his death out of
any malicious design, as others had done. Many
of these people, but a few hours since, had cried out,
" Crucify him, crucify him ;" and yet Christ vouch-
safes to touch their hearts, and to give them the
grace of repentance. On the contrary, with how
much difficulty does a revengeful person pardon an
injury; and how long must one wait for some small
testimony of reconciliation ! Let us adore the readi-
ness of Christ in pardoning those who were instru-
mental in his death, and condemn our own slowness
and backwardness in forgiving the least offences.

" 49. And all his acquaintance, and the women
that followed him from Galilee, stood afar off, be-
holding these things."

Christ has often curious and inquisitive spectators
of his mysteries, who are only present in body j but
love and fidelity are the things which keep these
holy women here, as they were those which caused
them at first to follow Jesus Christ. His grace
drew them to him ; his grace detains them. Effect
in my heart, O Jesus, that which thou didst effect
in theirs. Grant that I may never contemplate thee
fastened to the cross, but with reverence and religion,
never but with a crucified heart.

138 ST. LUKE.

" 50. % And, behold, there was a man named
Joseph, a counsellor; and he was a good man, and
a just:"

Fidelity in taking part in the humiliations of
Christ, is a thing very rare in a person of quality.
Joseph is the first confessor of Christ in his state of
death. It was for this particular office that God
prepared him by that goodness and justice, which
are here praised by the evangelist, and of which it is
the reward. The majesty and magnificence of God,
and his design of setting off the humiliations of his
Son, are the cause of his reserving to himself some
great persons, to be peculiarly applied and conse-
crated to the mystery of his burial. We do not
enough consider this mystery, though it be particu-
larly set down in the Scripture and in the creed.
It is the emblem of baptism, wherein we are buried
with Christ.

" 51. (The same had not consented to the coun-
sel and deed of them :) he was of Arimathea, a city
of the Jews ; who also himself waited for the king-
dom of God."

God has servants of several sorts; and graces*
the measure and quality whereof are little knowu to
men. We must not proceed rashly to judge in this
matter, nor to condemn those, who may seem to us
to be too reserved on some particular occasions.
There are some persons, of whom God requires no
more, with respect to public acts of injustice, than
only not to join in them, and to live according to the
rules of Christian faith and hope, unless they are
particularly obliged by their state of life or their
ministry, to oppose injustice, and to speak in behalf

CHAPTER XXIII. 139

of innocence. We know that Joseph " consented
not to the counsel and deed of them ;" but we do not
know whether he spoke on this occasion or not.

" 52. This man went unto Pilate, and begged the
body of Jesus."

Faith draws even from the death of Christ the
courage to declare for him. On such dangerous
occasions, a man may easily know, whether he has
been silent through cowardice and fear, or according
to God's will, and by his Spirit. To beg " the body
of Jesus," is to beg the victim of the world, the most
precious relic which can possibly be imagined, and
the source of all graces. Happy he who begged it,
received it, and disposed of it as God required him
to do.

" 53. And he took it down, and wrapped it in
linen, and laid it in a sepulchre that was hewn in
stone, wherein never man before was laid."

God causes his Son to receive the honour of a
burial, that it may serve as a declaration of his inno-
cence, and as a proof of the reality of his death and
resurrection. Christians are well enough disposed
to honour the death and resurrection of Christ, but
few are mindful of his burial. This, according to
Paul, is the model of a Christian life, which is a life
hid from the world, a life wherein we labour, not
only to crucify, but likewise to bury the old man ;
so as that nothing may any longer appear but the
new man, and such things as are worthy of him.

" 54. And that day was the preparation, and the
sabbath drew on. 55. % And the women also, which
came with him from Galilee, followed after, and be-
held the sepulchre, and how his body was laid."

140 ST. LUKE.

Jesus Christ, being dead, draws to his sepulchre
those holy women, who had continued faithful to him
at the cross. These souls, devoted to the service
of his sacred humanity, to feed and support him,
during his life, seek him after his death, that they
may serve him, as long as they know him to remain
on earth. Let us bury and serve him in the poor,
since he has left them in his place, and has in them
continual wants and necessities to be supplied.

" 56. And they returned, and prepared spices and
ointments; and rested the sabbath-day, according to
the commandment. "

The honour which these pious women prepare
for the body of this divine victim, is a mark of its
sanctity, and of the consecration of this holy flesh,
by its being offered as a sacrifice. It is upon this
account that we likewise pay some honour to the
bodies of Christians, as being the temples of the
Holy Ghost, and parts of that adorable victim.

CHAPTER XXIV.

Sect. I. — The holy Women at the Sepulchre. The
Incredulity of the Apostles.

u 1. Now, upon the first day of the week, very
early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre,
bringing the spices which they had prepared, and
certain others with them."

The diligence and earnestness of a soul which
seeks God, is represented in these holy women.
All sloth must be shaken off, when the doing some-
thing for Jesus Christ is the matter in question.

CHAPTER XXIV. 141

There are two conditions, which ought to precede
the good works which we would offer to God : we
must prepare ourselves to perform them with holy
dispositions; and we must set about them without
delay.

" 2. And they found the stone rolled away from
the sepulchre."

When persons have a true confidence in God,
obstacles do not hinder them from undertaking what-
ever they have reason to believe he requires; and
the removal of them they leave to him. All man-
ner of difficulties vanish before those who are led by
a lively faith, and a sincere desire to please God.

" 3. And they entered in, and found not the body
of the Lord Jesus."

God sometimes tries those who seek him, when
they think to find him in the exercises of piety. It
is no small mortification to a soul which loves God,
to lose an opportunity of serving him, when it ima-
gines itself so happy as to have one present.

" 4. And it came to pass, as they were much per-
plexed thereabout, behold, two men stood by them
in shining garments:"

The absence of Jesus Christ ought always to give
us some perplexity, and to make us fear, lest this
has happened through our own fault. God never
leaves those souls in trouble long, whom he exercises
by withdrawing himself from them : if he do not
send them comforters from heaven, he causes them
to meet with visible angels upon earth, for their sup-
port and consolation. The only way is to be faith-
ful to him ; and he will certainly be so on his part.

" 5. And as they were afraid, and bowed down

142 ST. LUKE.

their faces to the earth, they said unto them, Why
seek ye the living among the dead?"

We never seek Jesus Christ without benefit and
comfort, when we seek him sincerely, and with our
whole heart. How full of consolation is this gospel
of life to those souls who are wholly taken up in
contemplating the death and burial of their Saviour !
The mysteries of the cross and death of Christ, to
those who apply themselves thereto with faith and
devotion, are a means of arriving at the joy of his
new life.

" 6. He is not here, but is risen : remember how
he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee,"

Whoever by mortifying himself seeks Jesus Christ
dead, shall find him risen again, by receiving the
Spirit and participation of his new life. The belief
of mysteries is founded chiefly upon the word of
Christ. It is to this word that the angels refer
these very souls, whom they instruct with their own
mouth by the direction of God. Render our minds
intent, O Jesus, and make us always remember, that
thou art no longer visible here below, that heaven is
the place where we must seek for thee, and that thou
art to be found only by faith.

" 7. Saying, The Son of man must be delivered
into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and
the third day rise again."

Strange necessity of the humiliations and suffer-
ings of Christ ! How can sinners then pretend to
be exempted from suffering? It was not indeed
absolutely necessary in itself that the Son of God
should be the victim of his Father ; but it was ne-
cessary, that he should be so, supposing the designs

CHAPTER XXIV. 143

of God concerning the satisfaction of his justice, and
the salvation of men. Since Christ, according to
the divine decrees, was to be the principle of our life
and righteousness, and the head of the elect, it was
necessary, that, after he had appeased the wrath of
God by his death, he should receive a new life by his
resurrection.

" 8. And they remembered his words,"

The remembrance of the words of Christ on pro-
per occasions, is a grace which proceeds from Christ
himself. It was he who assisted the memory of these
pious women, and who worked in their hearts, at the
same time that the angels exhorted them to remember.

" 9. And returned from the sepulchre, and told
all these things unto the eleven, and to all the rest.
10. It was Mary Magdalene, and Joanna, and Mary
the mother of James, and other women that were
with them, which told these things unto the apostles."

These women, who had more courage than the
apostles at the time of Christ's passion, receive the
first news of his resurrection, and are the persons
who inform them of it. It is the duty of those
pious souls, whom God visits with particular graces,
to acquaint their pastors or directors therewith, and
to submit them to their judgment. Obedience pre-
serves those graces which piety has obtained, and
gains a new degree of grace to make use of them.

" 11. And their words seemed to them as idle
tales, and they believed them not. 12. f Then
arose Peter, and ran unto the sepulchre; and, stoop-
ing down, he beheld the linen clothes laid by them-
selves, and departed, wondering in himself at that
which was come to pass."

144 ST. LUKE.

The wonder of Christ's resurrection infinitely sur-
passes the hopes and understandings of men. God
did not perhaps require of the apostles, that they
should believe so great a mystery upon the bare
word of two or three women ; but he only begins to
awaken their faith by this first account. Peter, as
one of the chiefest of the apostles, runs to the sepul-
chre, believes, wonders, and is thereby disposed to
receive with greater faith the visit of our blessed
Lord.

Sect. II. — The two Disciples goiilj* to Emmans.

" 13. f And, behold, two of them went that same
day to a village called Emmaus, which was from
Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. 14. And
they talked together of all these things which had
happened."

If the faith of these two disciples was somewhat
weakened, yet they were at least filled with the re-
membrance of Christ's mysteries: and for persons to
love to discourse of holy things, is one means to raise
aud revive their hope. Would to God, that Chris-
tians would in their journies and conversations imitate
them, instead of entertaining one another with trifles,
as they generally do.

" 15. And it came to pass, that, while they com-
muned together, and reasoned, Jesus himself drew
near,* and went with them." [* Fr. Came and
joined them.]

How profitable and advantageous is it, to discourse
of Jesus Christ ! If, when we speak of him with
piety, he do not become visibly present indeed, yet
he becomes more present to our heart by an increase

CHAPTER XXIV. 145

of grace. Let us admire and adore the charity of
the good Shepherd, who, as soon as ever he is risen
again, labours to gather his dispersed flock, and to
bring back his sheep which were gone astray. Vouch-
safe, O Lord, to join thyself unto us, to act, and go
along with us, in all our undertakings and journeys,
to sanctify them by thy Spirit.

" 16. But their eyes were holden that they should
not know him."

If grace open not our minds, they will continue
eternally shut with respect to the mysteries of Christ.
God has his secret and wise designs, when he some-
times hides himself from those whom he loves the
most. The ignorance to which God, out of his just
anger, abandons the wicked by way of punishment,
is one thing ; that into which he permits the righ-
teous to fall, only to exercise and try them, is an-
other. We may have Jesus Christ with us, and not
know him. We may walk along with him in his
ways, and yet not see clearly into his conduct.

" 17. And he said unto them, What manner of
communications are these that ye have one to an-
other, as ye walk, and are sad?"

Christ compassionates the sorrows of those who
have a sense of his. This grief and sadness for
having lost him, though weak and imperfect in itself,
is notwithstanding pleasing to him, and prepares
them for something more perfect. It is even the
weakness and imperfection of the disciples which oc-
casions this visit, and draws upon them the comfort
and consolation of so good a Master. Who will
not hope in him?

Vol. III. G 57

146 ST. LUKE.

" 18. And the one of them, whose name was
Cleopas, answering, said unto him, Art thou only
a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the
things which are come to pass there in these days?"

How many Christians are such strangers in the
church, that Christ and his mysteries are almost
utterly unknown to them, after so many ages of pre-
dictions, miracles, and instructions ! Let our faith
render the mystery of the cross so familiar to our
minds, that we may never be surprised whenever the
cross presents itself unto us.

" 19. And he said unto them, What things?
And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Na-
zareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word
before God and all the people : 20. And how the
chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be con-
demned to death, and have crucified him."

Death and glory cause a forgetfulness of what has
been suffered during this mortal life. Christ seems
to be such with respect tc the apostles, as they them-
selves were with respect to him. He forgets, as it
were, his state of infirmity, as they had forgotten his
divinity. The praise of a bishop, or of a minister of
the church, cannot be real and substantial, unless it
include these two things, deeds and words, doing and
teaching. It is a matter of small moment, to charm
the ears with fine discourses, or to dazzle the eyes
with remarkable and shining actions; it is only by
the works of a holy life, that a man is in the sight of
God such as he ought to be. If an extraordinary
mission be not authorized by miracles, we are not
obliged to have any manner of regard to it. If piety

CHAPTER XXIV. HT

do not support preaching and ecclesiastical labours,
a man either labours altogether in vain, or at least in
vain as to himself.

" 21. But we trusted * that it had been he which
should have redeemed Israel : and besides all this,
to-day is the third day since these things were done."
[* Fr. Hoped.]

Alas, what is the spirit of man without the Spirit
of God, even in those who were appointed to be the
founders of the church, and the preachers of the
faith ! It hopes for every thing, when there is the
least foundation imaginable; and it despairs of every
thing, in the time of the greatest hope. True faith
waits for God's proper time, without any concern or
anxiety : Christian hope is such, only by patience
and perseverance. The deliverance and salvation of
the heart are the things which both aim at and expect.

" 22. Yea, and certain women also of our com-
pany made us astonished, which were early at the
sepulchre ; 23. And when they found not his body,
they came, saying, that they had also seen a vision
of angels, which said that he was alive.',

Early in the morning of the third day the sepul-
chre is found empty, angels descend from heaven to
publish the resurrection, and the apostles themselves
find not Christ's body in the tomb : is not all this
enough to put these wandering pilgrims again into
the right way, who had been instructed by the
preaching of the Son of God? But nothing exter-
nal is sufficient to inspire men with faith and hope ;
this is the work of internal grace, which operates in
the heart. This incredulity of the apostles is mys-
terious, it makes a part of the economy of the divine

g2

148 ST. LUKE.

dispensations, and is instrumental in promoting the
faith of all people. God frequently permits faults
in others for our instruction ; and the falls of the
most perfect are useful in supporting the most weak.

M 24. And certain of them which were with us
went to the sepulchre, and found it even so as the
women had said; but him they saw not."

For this very reason they ought to have believed
he was risen ; for he could not have been so, if they
had found him there. But without grace, that which
should contribute to awaken and fortify faith and
hope, serves only to weaken them the more; whereas,
with grace they are nourished, and increase by those
very things which seem most violently to obstruct and
oppose them.

M 25. Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow
of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken I"

This reproof from Christ seems somewhat harsh
and severe, but it is extremely charitable, and neces-
sary to awaken their faith. A flattering mildness
or gentleness, which lulls the sinner asleep, is no
other than a real cruelty ; whereas, on the contrary,
a sharp word is a kind instance of severity, and a ne-
cessary remedy to open the eyes of a friend. The
mystery of the cross is the salvation of the world.
Whoever does not believe it, disowns all the pro-
phets, or does not understand them at all.

" 26. Ought not Christ to have suffered these
things, and to enter into his glory?"

The necessity of suffering is unavoidable : there
is no other gate by which we can enter into glory.
This is the way of salvation for the whole church ;
it is that of every one of the elect : it was the way

CHAPTER XXIV. 149

of the Head, and it must be that of the members.
In vain would men hope to find out another way,
more easy, and better suited to the inclinations of
nature. For the more it is flattered, the more is it
corrupted, and rendered more unworthy of God. It
cannot possibly be either sanctified or saved, but by
mortification, which makes one part of the cross.
No, Lord, I desire no salvation, but through the
virtue, and by the participation of thy sufferings;
and it is in these very sufferings that I find the grace
and strength to partake of them in thy Spirit.

" 27. And beginning at Moses and all the pro-
phets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures
the things concerning himself."

All the Scriptures, even those of the Old Testa-
ment, are full of Jesus Christ. We find him in
them, when we know how to seek him as we ought;
and this we must do by the light of faith, and of the
love of Jesus Christ himself. Let us pursue the
intimation here given us by Christ, in order to attain
to the true knowledge of his mysteries. How worthy
is this study of a Christian, instead of those vain
sciences with which the mind is generally filled !
Vouchsafe, great God, to give us a relish and love
for thy Scriptures, and a perfect understanding of
them. Let it be our delight to seek, to find, and to
taste Christ in them ; and to admire therein the
holiness and wonders of thy conduct, in relation to
him, to his church, and to all his elect.

M 28. And they drew nigh unto the village whither
they went: and he made as though he would have
gone further."

God tries the charity of his servants as well as

150 ST. LUKE.

their faith. He seems sometimes to be withdraw-
ing himself from a soul, when he is ready to mani-
fest and communicate himself thereto in the fullest
manner. The fear of losing him increases our
esteem both of God and of his gifts, and kindles in
us a more ardent desire of them : and it is by this
desire that he causes us in some sense to deserve
not to lose them, and to receive a more abundant
participation of them.

"29. But they constrained him, saying, Abide
with us; for it is toward evening, and the day is far
spent. And he went in to tarry with them."

The love of truth, and the influence of charitable
instructions, cause charity to grow and increase in
the heart. In this manner ought we to use a holy
violence towards Christ in the persons of the poor,
and, as it were, constrain him to receive our hospi-
tality and our alms. We must likewise use this
holy violence towards him in prayer, that our imper-
fections may not constrain him to forsake us. Happy
is that person who fully knows what it is to possess
him by faith and charity, and by the holy eucharist !
The time of receiving this, is the proper time to im-
portune him more earnestly to make his abode in us.
How much greater reason have we to redouble our
importunities, when we see the Sun of righteousness
begin to decline, and the light of faith to grow dim,
in ourselves, in our brethren, or in the church, and
more especially when the day of life is likewise far
spent ?

" 30. And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with
them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and
gave to them."

CHAPTER XXIV. 151

Christ himself feeds those who feed him in the
poor. We may know religious persons, not only in
the exercises of religion, but even in the most com-
mon actions of life, which they convert into holy
actions, by the holiness of their dispositions, by
prayer which sanctifies every thing, and by the obla-
tion which they make thereof to God. The meals
of Christians ought to resemble those of Christ ;
who here teaches them never to sit down to them
till they have invoked the divine blessing by thanks-
giving and prayer, which must be performed with
faith, attention, and reverence, and not carelessly, by
rote, and only for fashion's sake.

" 31. And their eyes were opened, and they knew
him; and he vanished out of their sight."

The eucharist is a bread of life and of knowledge.
God diffuses his light, and manifests himself when he
pleases, by this sacrament, to such souls as are a little
wavering in the faith, and begin to grow weak in
piety. One communion alone sometimes opens the
eyes more with respect to matters of faith, than all
the discourses and instructions of men. The prac-
tice of God's word is often more enlightening to
souls which have a true simplicity, than constant
study is to the learned. It happens, on some certain
occasions, that we possess God without knowing him ;
and that when we do know him, we lose the sensible
enjoyment of him. We have then great need of an
enlightened guide, who can both discern and follow
the ways of God, and who will neither lead souls
astray, nor disquiet and disturb them.

'* 32. And they said one to another, Did not our
heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the
way, and while he opened to us the Scriptures ?"

152 ST. LUKE.

The word of Jesus Christ is a fire which inflames
him who feeds thereon ; whereas the conversation of
the world serves only to distract and to cool the heart.
Pious discourses, the truths of the Scripture, and the
explication of the mysteries of our salvation, when
retained in the memory, kindle the love of God in
our heart, and feed and preserve it there. We do
not always perceive immediately the good effects pro-
duced in us by the word of God and by sermons,
but we find them afterwards. Let us but love to
hear God spoken of, and we shall soon be sensible
that God himself speaks to us, warns us, and changes
our hearts.

" 33. And they rose up the same hour, and re-
turned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven gathered
together, and them that were with them, 34. Say-
ing, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to
Simon."

There sometimes wants but one Christian conver-
sation, one pious discourse, or one devout commu-
nion, to cause a soul to return into the way of per-
fection, which it was just going to leave. The faith
of these disciples grew weaker, the farther they re-
moved from Jerusalem ; by returning thither, they
find sufficient matter to strengthen and increase it.
We may observe two circumstances very common in
the failings of the elect, that God does not permit
them to fall away very far, and that they are ready
to return whenever he recalls them. Christ distin-
guishes St. Peter, and favours him with a particular
visit, because he is a penitent, whose heart is under
great affliction and humiliation ; and likewise to teach
us to respect and honour authority in the pastors,

CHAPTER XXIV. 153

notwithstanding all their faults and imperfections.
It is a very great consolation to the disciples reco-
vered from their errors, but continuing still weak, to
learn so soon that Christ does not reject sinners, and
that he has even a compassion and tenderness towards
penitents.

" 35. And they told what things were done in the
way, and how he was known of them in breaking of
bread."

We may here observe the wonderful effects of
the eucharist, of the practice of works of mercy, and
of the word of God, which are, 1. To recover us
out of dangerous ways and errors. 2. To bring us
back to unity. 3. To confirm us in the faith. And,
4. To open our eyes, that we may know Christ more
perfectly. — O heavenly bread, broken upon the cross
for my salvation, in the eucharist for my spiritual
nourishment, and in the Scriptures for my instruc-
tion; save, feed, and enlighten me; and grant that
I may every where know and acknowledge thee to
be the bread of God, of life, and of my soul.

Sect. III. — Christ appears to the Apostles, conjirms
his Resurrection, and promises the Holy Ghost.

" 36. 51 And as they thus spake, Jesus himself
stood in the midst of them, and saith unto them,
Peace be unto you."

Jesus is present in the midst of those who dis-
course of his mysteries. O good Shepherd, thou
seekest thy sheep in all places, to comfort them, to
strengthen their faith, and to show them, by thy visi-
ble presence, that thou knowest the means to render
thyself present to them in their wants, and whenever

g3

154 ST. LUKE.

they are assembled together in thy name, and ac-
cording to thy word. May thy charity be praised
by all Christians, may it be imitated by all pastors in
their proper manner. Whenever Jesus enters into
a heart, he brings peace into it. He produces it
there by only wishing or willing it, because his will
is omnipotent, and is even his omnipotence itself'.

" 37. But they were terrified and affrighted, and
supposed that they had seen a spirit. "

The spirit of man, incapable of itself to discern the
things of God, is ready on all occasions to lay itself
open to the illusions of the devil, and to take the
peculiar favours and visits of God for no other than
illusions. The devil flatters men at first, to take
away all diffidence and distrust, and to keep them
from examining any thing : on the contrary, the Spirit
of God imprints a fear and amazement on the mind,
because he would have nothing which is extraordi-
nary received without examination.

" 38. And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled?
and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?"

The mind of man is strangely fruitful in such
thoughts as are contrary to faith. In all extraordi-
nary visits from God, it is good to be somewhat fear-
ful and diffident, but not to such a degree as to be
troubled, and to suffer all sorts of thoughts to rise
in our hearts. It is not sufficient that we receive
extraordinary measures of grace from God ; it is like-
wise necessary that he should make them known, and
hinder our minds from turning them to our own dis-
advantage.

" 39. Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I
myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not
flesh and bones, as ye see me have."

CHAPTER XXIV. 155

A body raised from the dead is a real body, which
is solid, and capable of being touched. We must
settle and confirm ourselves in the belief of the re-
surrection of our bodies by the resurrection of that
of our Head. Whoever expects to have his own
body enjoy the rights which are enjoyed by the body
of Christ, must, after his example, take upon him-
self the yoke of mortification here below. Those
marks and prints of his sufferings, which still remain
in the midst of his glory, serve to put us in mind that
it was by the cross that he merited it, and that we
must bear it after him in order to be glorified with
him.

" 40. And when he had thus spoken, he showed
thern his hands and his feet."

Christ retains the scars of his wounds, 1. To en-
courage us to suffer for him, by showing us how much
he loves sufferings. 2. For the comfort and conso-
lation of his elect. 3. For the confusion of the
damned. 4. To afford us a sanctuary or refuge in
our temptations and troubles. And, 5. To show us
fountains of grace continually open to us in our wants.
— Grant me, Lord, the fidelity to improve to these
purposes the contemplation of thy sacred wounds.
Let them not be closed against me, I humbly beseech
thee. And let my heart enter into thine, by that
passage which thou hast been pleased to keep open
for it.

" 41. And while they yet believed not for joy,
and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any
meat?"

God produces faith by degrees in the heart, that
men may be the more sensible that it is his work.

156 ST. LUKE.

The slowness and backwardness of the disciples shows
plainly, that they did not believe lightly and rashly.
Every thing here seems to oppose the belief of the
resurrection, amazement, fear, a prepossessed imagi-
nation, joy, and admiration : the evidence alone of
the proofs here given bears down all before it, and
establishes the belief of this truth. For a man not
to yield to these is to resolve to shut his eyes, and to
be wilfully blind.

" 42. And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish,
and of an honey-comb. 43. And he took it, and did
eat before them."

To instruct and heal a soul, a pastor must stoop
to the lowest condescensions. If he eat with his
sheep, he must do it only out of charity, not often,
and with the indifFerency of a man raised from the
dead, chiefly to comply with their weakness, and to
strengthen them without weakening himself. Happy
that pastor, who even by the meanest and most na-
tural actions shows plainly, that he is risen again, in
performing them in the spirit of the new life, and as
a person altogether heavenly.

" 44. And he said unto them, These are the
words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with
you, that all things must be fulfilled which were
written in the law of Moses, and in the Prophets,
and in the Psalms, concerning me."

Would to God that those entertainments or re-
pasts at which pastors and spiritual directors are en-
gaged to be present, were, like this, only an occa-
sion of instructing others, of making known the
truths of religion, of replenishing souls with Christ
and his mysteries, of inspiring into them a love for

CHAPTER XXIV. 157

the Scriptures, of sanctifying conversation with pious
discourses, and of settling and confirming the waver-
ing faith of the weak. Let us be careful to seek
Jesus Christ in the Old Testament, as well as in the
New. He is in all parts thereof; and in all he frames
the heart of a Christian. The Prophets exercise
our faith, the Psalms nourish our hope, and the Law
tries and makes known our charity.

" 45. Then opened he their understanding, that
they might understand the Scriptures/'

We cannot penetrate into and understand the true
sense of the Scriptures, but only by Jesus Christ.
In vain would he himself have instructed the apostles
in. the truths contained in them, if he had not like-
wise given them the understanding thereof. It is
a strange delusion under which heretics are, in flat-
tering every private person with this gift of under-
standing, which even the apostles themselves, though
sanctified, did not receive till after the resurrection,
and that by a peculiar grace and favour. It is the
fruit of humility, prayer, true spiritual poverty, and
of fidelity in bringing the mind into subjection to the
yoke of faith. O Jesus, it is thou who hast the key
of the knowledge of the Scriptures, as well as that of
our understandings and hearts. Cause us to under-
stand, to love, and to practise them.

" 46. And said unto them, Thus it is written,
and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from
the dead the third day :"

" It behoved Christ to suffer," because God had so
ordained it; because he could not content his mercy
without satisfying his justice, which was not to be
done but by a victim worthy of himself; and because

158 ST. LUKE.

" It became him, for whom are all things, and by
whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto
glory, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect
through sufferings. " Heb. ii. 10.

" 47. And that repentance and remission of sins
should be preached in his name among all nations,
beginning at Jerusalem."

Repentance on the part of sinners, and mercy on
that of God, are the summary of the whole gospel.
Christ has purchased the whole earth by his death,
and by preaching he takes possession thereof: but
he both purchased it and possesses it only in order to
sanctify and consecrate it to God. True repentance
and remission of sins are inseparable. Whoever re-
fuses to make any satisfaction to justice by repent-
ance, has not the least right to mercy. God leads
to both by his word. He gives the spirit of repent-
ance to those whose sins he intends to pardon ; and
causes those to obey his word, to whom he designs
to give the grace of repentance.

" 48. And ye are witnesses of these things."

All Christians are not designed to be witnesses of
the mysteries and doctrine of Christ, by preaching
them and dying for them, as the apostles were; but
all ouo-ht to be witnesses of them by their life and
conversation. Our faith renders these things present
to ourselves; let our manners and behaviour publish
them to others.

" 49. f And, behold, I send the promise of my
Father upon you : but tarry ye in the city of Jeru-
salem, until ye be endued with power from on high."

Comfortable promise this, and which follows the
preceding discourse very seasonably. For who could

CHAPTER XXIV. 159

believe that a God died and rose again, who couid
hope for the remission of his sins, who could love re-
pentance and the cross, without this gift, which the
Father promises and sends us by his Son ? Retire-
ment and repose were by Jesus Christ judged neces-
sary for the apostles and disciples, in order to their
receiving the Holy Ghost, who is the strength of the
weak: and can we judge otherwise by ourselves?
These words should teach us, neither to expose our-
selves to the world and its temptations, nor to under-
take the work of God, until we be endued with power
from on high.

Sect. IV. — Christ blesses his Apostles, and ascends
into heaven. Their Joy and continual Prayer.

" 50. % And he led them out as far as to Beth-
any; and he lifted up his hands, and blessed them."

Jesus blesses his disciples as their Father, their
Head, and their sovereign Priest; and this benedic-
tion supports them till the descent of the Holy
Ghost. These adorable hands, lifted up, stretched
out, pierced, and nailed to the cross, as hands of
malediction, did by that very means become the foun-
tain of benediction to the whole earth, and of all kind
of graces to his church. Lift up, and extend over
me, O Lord, from the height of heaven, these divine
hands, on which my eternal portion and happiness
depends.

" 51. And it came to pass, while he blessed
them, he was parted from them, and carried up into
heaven."

The love with which Christ loves his own con-
tinues unto the end. He parts from them, only to

160 ST. LUKE.

unite them more closely and holily to himself. He
ascends into heaven, to prepare the way, and to open
the gate thereof unto them. Bless me, Lord, with
that kind of benediction which unites tiiose to thyself
who are as yet separated from thee in this world ;
and let thy heart, in leaving the earth, separate mine
from it, and draw me after thee into heaven.

" 52. And they worshipped him, and returned to
Jerusalem with great joy;"

Christ, in receiving the adoration of his disciples,
gives them his joy. It is good to unite ourselves in
heart to the apostles, that we may worship Jesus
Christ with them ; and, in imitation of them, to obey
him in seeking retirement, and in continuing in Je-
rusalem, which is the church, there to expect the
divine promises, which are received only in her bosom.
It is very probable, that this last adoration imprinted
on the minds of the disciples a reverence towards
Christ, and left them in such a temper of devotion,
in respect of him, as did not forsake them during
their whole life ; and that the joy which they felt in
their losses and tribulations, was the consequence of
this joy, which Jesus gave them at the time of his
parting from them.

" 53. And were continually in the temple, prais-
ing and blessing God. Amen."

Christ, who obliged his disciples to prepare them-
selves for the coming of the Holy Ghost by the ex-
ercise of praise, thanksgiving, and prayer, thereby
teaches us how we ought to prepare ourselves lor the
same. Temples and churches are the house of God ;
there he loves to receive our homage, to shed forth
his Spirit, and to communicate himself to his crea-

CHAPTER XXIV. 161

tures. If the apostles had so much reverence for a
temple wherein Christ was present only in figure,
how much more ought we to have for those temples
where he really resides; where the representative
sacrifice of his death is offered continually to his
Father; where that alliance or union, which he vouch-
safes to have with us to all eternity, is formed; and
where pastor and people, met together to praise and
bless God, afford a comfortable emblem of the hea-
venly Jerusalem, to all those whose hearts are entirely
set upon that celestial country !

THE

GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST.

ACCORDING TO

ST. JOHN.

THE

GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST,

ACCORDING TO

ST. JOHN.

CHAPTER I.

Sect. I. — The Word God. The Light shining in
Darkness. Grace and Truth by Jesus Christ.

"I. In the beginning was the Word, and the
Word was with God, and the Word was God."

What sublimity and majesty, what beauty and in-
struction, are there in these first words, which are
the Gospel of the most holy Trinity ! Our know-
ledge thereof ought to begin by that of the Son of
God, to whom it properly belongs to make his Fa-
ther known, as being his resemblance, image, and
substantial Word, co-eternal, and equal to him in all
things. It belonged likewise to the Holy Ghost to
bring us to the knowledge of the Son, and to dis-
cover to us his glory, (chap. xvi. 13, 14.) as he does
in this place, by beginning first with what he is in
himself. He thinks it sufficient to propose to our
faith his eternity, his existence in his Father, and
his divinity, without unfolding these mysteries to us.

166 ST. JOHN.

Our faith ought likewise to think this sufficient;
and to believe rather than to dispute, to adore rather
than to explain, to be thankful rather than nicely to
examine, and to love rather than to know.

" 2. The same was in the beginning with God."

The eternal Word, sole offspring of the divine
understanding, and only JSon of the Father, is from
all eternity in the bosom of him who produced him
by an eternal generation ; neither was the Father
ever without the Son. O eternal Word, inseparable
from thy eternal principle ! adorable Son, who never
leavest thy Father's bosom ! let me be never sepa-
rated from thee, and unite me in thee to thy Fa-
ther !

" 3. All things were made by him ; and without
him was not any thing made that was made."

The Holy Ghost, in the second place, declares to
us the glory of the Word, according to what he is in
respect of the creatures in general. They all owe
him homage, both on the account of their being,
whereof he is the fountain, by that power which is
common to him with the Father: and likewise on the
account of their manner of being, whereof he is the
divine idea and pattern, as being the eternal wisdom,
from whence all the creatures receive whatever beauty,
order, and proportion they have, either in relation to
one another, or to the designs of God. O eternal
wisdom ! lively image of all thy Father's perfections,
and adorable pattern of all created excellency ! cause
me to seek, to contemplate, and to adore thee in all
thy creatures ! Grant that they may continually
remind me of thee; that I may always ascribe to
thee all the glory of them, and that I may never be

CHAPTER I. 167

deaf to so many voices, which incessantly inform me
that thou hast made them, and that I ought to ad-
here to thee alone.

" 4. In him was life; and the life was the light

men.

The Holy Ghost, in the third place, declares to
us the glory of the Word, with respect to living,
spiritual, and intelligent creatures. He is not only
a living being which has light, but he is both life and
light itself by his eternal generation, the principle of
all created life, and the fountain of all the light and
knowledge which is in the soul. O uncreated wis-
dom, eternal truth, holy and sanctifying light, happy
and blessed life, and even happiness and blessedness
itself ! Without thee there is nothing but folly and
falsehood, darkness and sin, death and misery. Open
and enlighten my understanding, penetrate and in-
flame my heart, since my whole felicity consists in
knowing and loving thee.

" 5. And the light sliineth in darkness; and the
darkness comprehended it not."

The Holy Spirit, in the fourth place, declares to
us the glory of the Word, in relation to men, fallen
by sin into the darkness of ignorance and concu-
piscence. That small remainder of the knowledge of
what is good, and of natural light in sinners, namely,
reason itself, is no other than a communication of the
eternal light of the Word; and yet the generality of
men are either altogether ignorant of it, or at least
unmindful of rendering to him the glory thereof.
The Word incarnate, dwelling unknown amongst
men, is the light which shineth in darkness. Let us
take great care that we be not, even at this day, un-

168 ST. JOHN.

der the same darkness, at least in some degree.
How often do we know this light, only to reject it
when it shows us our duty.

" 6. % There was a man sent from God, whose
name was John."

The Holy Ghost, in the fifth place, declares to us
the glory of the Word in respect of the Jews, among
whom he appeared as a light shining in darkness.
It is a peculiar instance of mercy towards a sinner, a
city, or a people, when a holy man is sent from God
to prepare them for the reception of salvation. But
this great and peculiar mercy requires a suitable com-
pliance and return. St. John's mission is without
miracles, because it is ordinary, and he only preaches
repentance to men, in order to fit them to receive the
Messias; which was likewise the gospel of all the
prophets.

" 7. The same came for a witness, to bear wit-
ness of the Light, that all men through him might
believe."

Let us honour St. John as the first witness of Je-
sus Christ, the first apostle of the light, and the first
minister of the faith. How far soever those who
have contributed to our faith and salvation may be
from having any relation to us, let us look upon them
as our fathers, our benefactors, and our patrons. We
inherit all the graces and favours showed to the Jews,
and therefore we owe to God all that grateful ac-
knowledgment for them which they did not pay him.
" 8. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear
witness of that Light."

It is not any mere man who can enlighten us,
though he were another St. John. The Word of

CHAPTER I. 169

God, the eternal truth, alone is our light. How
much is it to be feared, lest those who are sometimes
called the lights of the church, should either be too
easily persuaded themselves that they are so, or at
least not be at all unwilling to be thought so by
others. John had but one thing to do, which was
to bear witness of the truth and the light; he con-
fined himself to this, and employed his whole life
and his death therein. Where is that minister of
Christ to be found who follows his example ?

" 9. That was the true Light, which lighteth
every man that cometh into the world."

Let us adore the Son of God as the true Light,
and the supreme, original, and substantial Reason,
which lighteth every man that cometh into the world;
since the soul cannot either think, or argue, or dis-
cern truth from falsehood, or good from evil, of it-
self, but only by that light which is communicated
to it from this eternal Reason. How many other
ways, O true Light, dost thou enlighten man by
being incarnate ! What darkness dost thou not
disperse by thy coming into the world ! Vouchsafe
to shine still more and more in my soul, so as to
drive out thence all the remains of false light and of
real darkness. Grant that I may love, follow, and
prefer thee to every other light !

" 10. He was in the world, and the world was
made by him, and the world knew him not.',

The love of the world hinders men from knowing
him who made it — though he made it only to make
himself known ! Sin blinds man, and shuts his eyes
against the true light, which is his God ; and the
more he resigns himself up to sin, the more his know-

Vol. III. H 57

170 ST. JOHN.

ledge of God diminishes, and his darkness continually
increases. It was this darkness which drew down
on the earth the true licjht in the incarnation. The
Word, seeing that the world by human wisdom
knew not God in the works of his divine wisdom, came
on purpose to save man by the foolishness of preach-
ing. And the world does not know him even yet !

"11. He came unto his own, and his own re-
ceived him not."

Let us tremble at these words. Not to receive
Jesus Christ is the greatest of misfortunes. The
Jews rejected him, not knowing who he was; and
we, how often have we done the same thing, after
having known and received him, after having been
loaded with his benefits ! To receive Jesus Christ,
is to obey his word, to follow his light, and to live
according to his gospel. O my God, how great is
the number of those who have never received thee
as they ought, and who reject thee by their wicked
lives, though they profess themselves to be thine by
partaking of thy sacrameuts ! Christ, rejected by
his own, is the consolation of all such as suffer at the
hands of their near relations.

" 12. But as many as received him, to them gave
he power to become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on his name: 13. Which were born,
not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the
will of man, but of God."

In the last place, the Holy Ghost declares the
o-lory of the incarnate Word, with respect to Chris-
tians, in his communicating the quality of son of
God, and his rights, to those who receive him with
a faith which is lively and fruitful in good works.

CHAPTER I. 171

The true nobility, and that which alone ought to be
esteemed and valued by a Christian, consists in being
a child of God. This quality comprehends every
thing ; but, alas, few understand it, few preserve it,
few live like children of God ! A gentleman of the
lowest rank values himself upon his not degenerating
from his birth ; and yet a Christian, by leading a
carnal life, degenerates from a birth which is alto-
gether holy, spiritual, and divine. It is by the choice
of the will of God, and by his love, that we are made
partakers of his divine nature, and appointed to en-
joy his heavenly inheritance. It is this will, there-
fore, and this love, which we must take for the rule
of our life, and not the will of the flesh, nor the will
of man, namely, a human or carnal love.

" 14. % And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt
among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of
the only-begotten of the Father,) full of grace and
truth."

It is no less impossible to comprehend here the
humiliation and abasement of the Word, than it is
to comprehend his dignity and glory. Here are five
degrees of abasement opposed to the glories above-
mentioned : — God became man ; the Son of the Fa-
ther, the son of man ; the Word, a child ; the Life,
a mortal man ; and the Light, by dwelling among
men, shone in the midst of darkness. Is it then so
small a matter, that carnal man should become the
child of God, when, in order to this, it wa6 necessary
that the Son of God should be made flesh ? To
set our hearts upon the objects of sense, and upon
worldly greatness, is to oppose the design of the in-
carnation ; since it was on purpose to withdraw our

H 2

172 ST. JOHN.

affections from such objects, and to raise them to
the love of things invisible, that God was pleased to
become visible, and to humble and abase himself.
It is highly just and reasonable, that we should every
day adore and contemplate, with gratitude and thanks-
giving, the humble birth and appearance of the Word
in human nature; since this is the foundation of our
own adoption. Let the great persons of the world
learn from him, not to avoid and shun the poor and
miserable ; and let the poor, on their part, learn to
bear with patience and willingness the want of hon-
ours and riches. Christ is the fulness of truth,
of grace, and of glory : of truth, to verify the types
and figures of the Jewish church; of grace, to com-
plete the righteousness of the Christian church ; of
glory, to crown the holiness of the elect, and to per-
fect and consummate the church and religion in
heaven.

" 15. f John bare witness of him, and cried, say-
ing, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh
after me is preferred before me; for he was before
me.

A preacher ought to determine not to know nor
to preach any thing save Jesus Christ humbled, after
John's example; and Jesus Christ crucified, after
Paul's. He must be very careful to fix the minds
of his audience upon the excellency of our blessed
Saviour, by hiding and concealing himself. John
is not a timorous witness; he preaches Christ openly,
and with a loud voice, and is under no apprehension
that, by extolling his Master's greatness, he shall
lessen his own reputation. Men are not, generally
speaking, very forward to praise those who appear in

CHAPTER I. 173

the same rank, and have the same employment with
themselves. The praise which John here gives to
Christ is plain and simple, because it is sincere ;
very different from that of a hypocrite, who proclaims
the merit of others only out of pride, to hide his
own envy, and to gain esteem by an appearance of
equity, penetration, and humility.

" 16. And of his fulness have all we received,
and grace for grace."

All grace which tends to salvation was given pe-
culiarly to Jesus Christ. Whatever we receive of
that nature, is no other than a gift of his bounty,
and an emanation from his fulness. Let us adore
him as our Head, that, in quality of his members,
we may be filled out of his abundance. The more
closely we are united to him, the more do we receive
of his double fulness, who, as God, is the fountain
of all good, and as the head of Christians and of
the elect, is the principle of all their holiness, and
of every grace which contributes thereto. Head for
head — the second Adam for the first : " grace for
grace ;" namely, an extraordinary, efficacious, power-
ful, and divine grace, such as is that of our blessed
Saviour, for the ordinary, weak, and perishing grace
of Adam, which was subject to free-will, suited to
man in the state of innocence, and productive of no-
thing but human virtues. Legislator for legislator —
Jesus Christ for Moses : " grace for grace;" instead
of the external grace of the law, a law of fear, threats,
types, and shadows, which affected only the senses,
an internal grace, a law of love, which converts the
heart, which writes in it the law of God, and puts
us in possession of the true promises. Let us be

174 ST. JOHN.

sensible of our own privileges and advantages, let us
praise God for them, and not do any thing to render
ourselves unworthy of them.

" 17. For the law was given by Moses, but grace
and truth came by Jesus Christ."

The law was given to awaken, admonish, and en-
lighten the sinner, and to cause him to seek after
grace. Grace is given to perfect and fulfil the law
by charity; and truth, to disperse the darkness of
idolatry, the shadows of Judaism, and the hypocrisy
of wicked Christians. The servant can do no more
than barely publish the law, and declare the will of
his Master : it belongs to Jesus Christ, the true God
and Saviour of souls, to take full possession of them
by his grace, to cause them to love him as he pleases,
and in them to accomplish the truth of his promises,
by changing hearts of stone into hearts of flesh.

" 18. No man hath seen God at any time ; the
only-begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the
Father, he hath declared him."

God, in his own nature invisible to mortal man,
rendered himself visible by the incarnation. He has
but one only Son, and he makes us members of him,
that he may have in him as many children as Chris-
tians. A favour so great and inconceivable this,
that none but he who confers it upon us can make
us thoroughly sensible thereof. The bosom of the
Father is the source from whence all truth is derived,
and where, at the same time, it resides : and as the
Son alone, the eternal truth, is in that adorable bo-
som, it is by him alone that all truth must be con-
veyed to us ; some by the natural channel of reason,
some by the supernatural means of revelation. O

CHAPTER I. 175

divine Light ! O eternal Truth ! grant that my heart
may become like a glass, always fit to receive the
impression of thy image ! Grant that neither the
dust of the earth, nor the breath of pride, may ever
tarnish or deface that purity and brightness which
thy Holy Spirit has vouchsafed to communicate
thereto !

Sect. II. — The testimony of John.

" 19. % And this is the record of John, when
the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem
to ask him, Who art thou ?"

What shall we be able to answer, when God him-
self shall ask us, and that perhaps very soon, " Who
art thou?" A Christian?* A priest? A bishop?
Where is the life of one? Where are the proper
works? Let us prevent this dreadful question, and
let us frequently ask ourselves, WTho we are. Let
us by no means stay for an answer from our self-
love. That is a flatterer and seducer, whom we
should neither hear nor suffer to speak. Let us also
have the same diffidence of others in this respect :
for we deceive them, and they in their turn deceive
us. Let our heart answer us as sincerely as it
will be one day forced to answer God.

"20. And he confessed, and denied not; but
confessed, I am not the Christ."

A person who is truly humble, is very glad to find
an opportunity of showing himself what he really is,
by removing the false opinions which have been en-
tertained concerning him. He does this in very plain,
distinct, and strong terms, without leaving the least
room for any doubt. He has no notion of that kind

176 ST. JOHN.

of faint denials, whereby a man retains with one hand
that which he rejects with the other, and without re-
ceding from the honour of that place which he un-
justly keeps in the esteem of others, would likewise
fain enjoy the reputation of humility.

"21. And they asked him, What then ? Art
thou Elias ? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that
prophet ? And he answered, No."

The humble man speaks very little, no more than
is just necessary, for fear of doing some prejudice
either to humility or truth. Humility conceals from
the humble man all personal advantages, and per-
suades him that he is nothing. John has the spirit
and power of Elias — is a prophet, and more than a
prophet ; but has no inclination to discover it, since
he may conceal it without any prejudice to truth.
He whose mind is fully taken up with the greatness
of his Master, thinks of nothing but how to abase
and humble himself before him.

" 22. Then said they unto him,- Who art thou ?
that we may give an answer to them that sent us :
what sayest thou of thyself?"

To an humble person nothing is more ungrateful
than to speak of himself; but he is far from showing
that it is so, out of a desire to reap the honour due
to his modesty. True humility uses no artifice, and
seeks not to discover itself by an affected resistance.
It loves to be constrained; but it always yields to
authority with a wise and discreet simplicity.

" 23. He said, I am the voice of one crying in
the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord,
as said the prophet Esaias."

The preacher is only the voice of Jesus Christ,

CHAPTER I. 177

which is to prepare the hearts of men by repentance
for his coming. Let him therefore take great care,
not to speak any thing but what may be spoken and
avowed by Jesus Christ himself. Every thing in a
minister of Christ ought to speak, aud that concern-
ing Jesus Christ himself, and the ways he has ap-
pointed of returning to God. How much good would
a preacher do, if he was but, as it were, a voice, not
to be seen, but only heard ! To see, and to be seen
too much, often destroys more than the word edifies.
A voice which cries aloud, is a preacher who teaches
the ways of the gospel, without weakening the truths
thereof, himself, or his ministry. They may be said
to preach in the wilderness, who preach with as little
awe upon them from their audience, and with as
much boldness, as if they saw nobody.

" 24-. And they which were sent were of the
Pharisees. 25. And they asked him, and said unto
him, Why baptizest thou then, if thou be not that
Christ, nor Elias, neither that prophet?"

It is one mark of a lawful mission, for a man to
be always ready to give an account thereof to those
who have authority to demand it. The devil is very
expert in deceiving and causing men to mistake their
way. He puts them upon amusing themselves, and
disturbing holy men with unprofitable questions and
inquiries, instead of profiting by their doctrine, ad-
monitions, and the example of their virtues. It is
by these that they should form a judgment of them.

'■ 26. John answered them, saying, I baptize with
water : but there standeth one among you, whom ye
know not;"

Men are not easily determined to undervalue them-

h 3

178 ST. JOHN.

selves and their employments, in order to please and
keep fair with those from whom they have nothing
either to hope or fear. There is a holy artifice or
address in turning the minds of men from a vain and
useless curiosity, to that religious and necessary one
which fixes their thoughts upon Jesus Christ. Hith-
erto the ignorance of the Jews was excusable; but
how highly culpable are multitudes of Christians,
who know not Christ ! He is treated like an un-
known person by all such as have no regard to his
presence, who live in a forgetfulness of his mys-
teries, and are as negligent in representing to him
their wants as if he were not their Saviour.

" 27. He it is, who, coming after me, is preferred
before me, whose shoe's latchet I am not worthy to
unloose."

If the greatest of saints be unworthy to render to
Christ even the meanest service, how much more un-
worthy beyond all comparison is the sinner to adore
and love God, which is the highest action which a
creature can perform towards him ! Reverence, fear,
and humiliation, before the holiness of God and
Christ, must always accompany our addresses in
prayer. Let us learn to put a vast difference be-
twixt the honour we pay to Jesus Christ, and that
respect which we pay to the memory of the greatest
among the saints. This is one of the first instruc-
tions which God thought fit to give us by John, and
we cannot act contrary thereto without overturning
every thing in religion.

" 28. These things were done in Bethabara be-
yond Jordan, where John was baptizing.,,

A word, in appearance altogether insignificant, is

CHAPTER I. 179

sometimes full of mysteries. John made choice of
this place, because it was the passage of Jordan, over
which the people about that time began to travel in
their way to Jerusalem to keep the feast of the
Passover. It was likewise by that very place, that
Jesus or Joshua led the people of God into the pro-
mised land, by a second miraculous passage through
the midst of the water, which was a kind of second
baptism, followed soon after by the second circum-
cision, and the second passover. It was, lastly, the
place where the manna ceased. And all this pre-
figured that which Jesus Christ was come to perform
in truth and reality, by washing his people from their
sins, in order to put them into possession of heaven,
where the perfect adoption is completed, the second
circumcision of the whole old man, where all types
and figures cease, and where he himself is the true
Lamb, and the eternal Passover.

Sect. III. — Another testimony of John. Jesus the
Lamb qf God.

" 29. 51 The next day John seeth Jesus coming
unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which
taketh away the sin of the world I"

Behold here, not the lamb of the legal and figura-
tive passover, but him who was typified and repre-
sented thereby; not one of those sacrifices which
God rejects as incapable of pleasing him, but the
sole sacrifice which he himself has chosen, and in
which he is well pleased ; not the lamb, which, being
offered every year and every day, could not take
away sin or justify the sinner, but him, who, being
once sacrificed on the cross, taketh away all the sins,

180 ST. JOHN.

not only of the Jews, but of all the world. I adore
thee, O Jesus, as the proper and peculiar victim of
God, alone worthy to adore him, and to render him
a homage suitable to his greatness and majesty !
It is in, by, and with thee alone, that we are per-
mitted to praise and adore him, to give him thanks,
to satisfy his justice, to implore his mercy, to hope
in him, and to perform towards him the other duties
of religion.

" 30. This is he of whom I said, After me com-
eth a man which is preferred before me ; for he was
before me."

Christ as man, was after John ; as God, he was
before him. He who knows the worth and value of
humility, can never be weary of humbling himself
when it is necessary to exalt others. John teaches
the ministers of the word, that they owe their people
an example of humility in particular; because they,
as well as he, are the ministers, and, as it were, the
forerunners of a God who stooped to the form of a
servant.

" 81. And I knew him not: but that he should
be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come
baptizing with water."

The only design of John's being sent into the
world, was to make Christ manifest to Israel ; and
yet he lived even to the time of his own preaching
without so much as knowing him. An eager and
impatient desire to know what will become of us, and
for what we are designed, is contrary to perfection.
When God leads and conducts a soul by himself,
he does it by ways so pure and holy, that it is sup-
ported by nothing but his Spirit and his grace. For

CHAPTER I. ]81

a man to spend thirty years of retirement in a desert,
in a course of almost incredible mortification, and
under a total destitution of all human relief and con-
solation, without knowing to what end ; to have but
once the comfort of speaking to Christ, and to see
him only as he passed by ; and yet to continue faith-
ful to God, and entirely satisfied with his conduct :
this is indeed no other than to serve God for God's
sake.

" 32. And John bare record, saying, I saw the
Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it
abode upon him."

Christ is the only person worthy to receive the
fulness of the Holy Spirit ; and John, to receive the
first knowledge of so great a mystery. The more
a man is filled with the Holy Spirit, the better is he
able to judge, in what fulness Christ received it in
order to communicate it. Innocence, purity, sin-
cerity, meekness, charity, fruitfulness in good works,
&c. these are the virtues with which Christ and the
Holy Ghost would inspire us, by taking to them-
selves, the one the emblem of a lamb, the other that
of a dove. Grant, O Jesus, that I may not be of
the number of those upon whom thy Spirit only
descends, but does not abide.

" 33. And I knew him not: but he that sent me
to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon
whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and re-
maining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with
the Holv Ghost."

Men may here learn to impart to souls and to the
directors of them, the necessary knowledge of truth,
with due measure and in proper season. God seems

182 ST. JOHN.

to have given John, for thirty years together, no
more light than was necessary to his personal per-
fection, with intent perhaps to establish him thereby
in such a substantial humility, as might keep him
from being puffed up by those greater degrees of
light and knowledge which were to be given him for
the salvation of others. John is very far from the
temper of those who are ashamed of having been a
long time ignorant of some truths, and who boast of
their intimacy with great persons, and of their early
knowledge of some secret. It is very rare for a
man to be willing to contribute to the glory of others
by his own abasement. Whoever the person be
who administers the baptism of Christ, it is always
Christ himself who baptizes internally. Let us
praise him for having not permitted our sanctification
to be at all obstructed by the insincerity or wicked-
ness of any minister.

" 34. And I saw, and bare record that this is the
Son of God."

It is the duty of a servant of God, freely and
willingly to bear witness to the truth, more especially
if he have received a particular commission to do it
from God or the church, as preachers, priests, teachers,
&c. Christ must necessarily have been the Son of
God, because he gave the Holy Ghost, and washed
man clean from all his sins. Wonderful is the divine
wisdom : it obviates the perverseness of the Jews by
the testimony of John, who calls Jesus Christ the
Son of God, before Christ declares that he is so.

CHAPTER I. 183

Sect. IV. — Two of John's disciples follow Christ,
Andrew brings Peter to him.

" 35. If Again, the next day after, John stood,
and two of his disciples; 36. And looking upon
Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of
God !"

One duty incumbent on pastors is, to make the
sufferings and sacrifice of Christ thoroughly known,
and to inspire sinners with a firm trust and confidence
in him as the victim of their salvation. This quality
is the meanest of all belonging to him, because it
puts him in the place of all sinners, and gives God
a right over his life as many times as there are men
whose lives are forfeited to the divine justice. John
here gives him the appellation of Lamb, rather than
that of any other kind of victim, because the lamb
was the proper victim for the deliverance of God's
people, and because the Jews were perhaps at that
very time going up to the paschal sacrifice. How
much better title and greater obligation have we to
adore Christ under this name, we whom he has de-
livered by dying for us as our passover? What a
comfort is it, that, in casting our eyes upon the re-
presentative sacrifice of Christ, we can every one say,
" Behold the Lamb of God," whose blood is my
deliverance, my life, my strength, and my salvation !
Unhappy they who deprive themselves of this sup-
port and consolation, by rejecting this commemorative
sacrifice, wherein this Lamb is spiritually present,
and offered up to his Father for us !

" 37. And the two disciples heard him speak,
and they followed Jesus."

184 ST. JOHN.

We ought to follow this victim as his members,
desiring to be sacrificed with him, by humiliations,
sufferings, and death. O let it not be in vain, that
we have this sacrifice so often represented before our
eyes : let it be also present to the eyes of our faith.
Let us follow the path marked with Christ's blood,
imitate his patience, and clothe ourselves with his
meekness.

" 38, Then Jesus turned, and saw them following,
and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said
unto him, Rabbi, (which is to say, being interpreted,
Master,) where dwellest thou?"

The holy curiosity of these disciples is not long
without its reward. How profitable is it to seek
Jesus Christ ! but in order to find him, we must
seek him by his own direction and assistance. The
law shows him to us, and inclines us to take some
steps towards him ; but we can take none to any
purpose, nor by any means go to him, unless he pre-
vent us with his grace, by turning towards us, look-
ing upon us with the eyes of his mercy, and speaking
even to our hearts. The first quality which we are
obliged to own and acknowledge in him is, that he
is our Master, of whom we are to learn the way of
salvation, and how to walk therein.

" 39. He saith unto them, Come and see. They
came and saw where he dwelt, and abode with him
that day : for it was about the tenth hour."

The church is the house of Christ. How great
a happiness is it to abide with him therein ! It is
matter of continual gratitude and acknowledgment
for all those who enjoy it. " Come and see," all
ye who do not yet belong to it ; and you will soon

CHAPTER I. 185

discover and own, that those have no other design
than to impose upon you, who would frighten you
from this house of truth and unity. Christ, notwith-
standing his poverty, used hospitality : a man has
always enough to do this, if he have but charity.
Happy day, and happy night, for these two disciples !

" 40. One of the two which heard John speak,
and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's bro-
ther. 41. He first findeth his own brother Simon,
and saith unto him, ^Ve have found the Messias,
which is, being interpreted, the Christ."

When we have once found Christ, and the way
which leads to him, we must not hide this treasure,
but we must communicate it to others. Fidelity in
obeying the voice of a master, or spiritual director,
obtains the grace and favour of finding one more en-
lightened, even Jesus Christ himself. Andrew is
the first disciple and apostle of Christ according to
the order of vocation, and performs the office of an
apostle towards his own brother Simon.

" 42. And he brought him to Jesus. And when
Jesus beheld him, he said, Thou art Simon the son
of Jona : thou shalt be called Cephas, which is, by
interpretation, A stone.'7

It is not enough to preach Jesus Christ, a man
must likewise conduct and bring souls to him. Happy
he whom Christ beholds ! His looks are saving,
and reach the heart. True friendship betwixt friends
or relations, consists in mutually assisting one another
in the business of salvation. A person who admits
his friend or his brother into a share of his fortune,
and of his favour with the great, is very frequently
instrumental in poisoning their hearts with the love of

186 ST. JOHN.

the world or of riches, and in ruining their souls for
ever. But to procure them the knowledge and favour
of Christ, is to promote their eternal salvation.

Sect. V. — Philip and Nathanael.

M 43. 51 The day following Jesus would go forth
into Galilee, and flndeth Philip, and saith unto him,
Follow me. 44. Now Philip was of Bethsaida, the
city of Andrew and Peter."

Let us by no means accuse this disciple of levity
in obeying so readily, without knowing the person
who commanded him; but let us adore the power of
this Master, who holds, as it were, our wills in his
own hand. There are three sorts of calls to the
knowledge of the truth. The first is, of those who
seek it by the advice of their spiritual director or
pastor, as Andrew did. The second, of such as are
brought to it by the advice and example of some
pious relation, as Peter was. The third, of those
who did not at all think of it, and whom God calls
thereto in an extraordinary manner,- as he called
Philip. In whatever way this happens, the call al-
ways comes from God.

" 45. Philip flndeth Nathanael, and saith unto
him, We have found him of whom Moses in the law,
and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the
son of Joseph."

Philip's knowledge in the law and the prophets is
a proof of his earnest application to the business of
his salvation, and to the discovering the Messias ;
and this application, which was no other than a gift
of God, was perhaps the very thing which drew down
upon him that of his vocation. The joy of these two

CHAPTER I. 187

disciples at having found the Messias in the person
of Jesus, shows plainly that they desired him, sought
after him, and had their hearts entirely taken up with
him. Let us imitate them if we really desire to find
Jesus Christ, to preserve him in our hearts, and to
receive new graces.

" 46. And Nathanael said unto him, Can there
any good thing come out of Nazareth ? Philip saith
unto him, Come and see."

It is necessary to taste Christ in order to know
him. We must not judge of the things of God by
appearances or human prejudices. What is it to
" come and see," but only to examine and believe, ac-
cording to the principles of faith, those things which
relate to salvation ? God has compassion on such
whose simplicity engages them in prejudices contrary
to the truth : but he confounds those who take them
up through envy and malice, and communicate them
to others.

" 47. Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, and
saith of him, Behold an Israelite indeed, in whom is
no guile !"

He who is solicitous, and takes the pains to in-
form himself concerning any thing, shows that he is
sincere in his error; but he who is not desirous of
any better information, gives us sufficient grounds to
believe that his prejudice is not free from all guile
and dissimulation. The character of great sincerity
is a very great character, not indeed in the world,
but in the gospel and in the church.

" 48. Nathanael saith unto him, Whence knowest
thou me? Jesus answered and said unto him, Be-
fore that Philip called thee, when thou wast under
the fig-tree, I saw thee."

188 ST. JOHN.

The divine knowledge of Christ sees into every
thing. It is the comfort of the sincere, that he knows
the uprightness of their hearts : and it ought to be
the terror of the crafty and deceitful, that the dis-
guise and dissimulation of their minds cannot be con-
cealed from him.

" 49. Nathanael answered and saith unto him,
Rabbi, thou art the Son of God ; thou art the King
of Israel."

A beginning of grace, which perhaps appears very
small and inconsiderable in the eyes of men, is capa-
ble of bringing us entirely to God, when he sheds
abroad his light and love in our hearts. This faith
of Nathanael is much to be admired ; and yet it is
but a small specimen, as it were, of that which the
Son of God was to produce in the hearts of so many
Jews and Gentiles. Let us show towards this divine
Master, the docility proper to disciples ; towards this
only Son of God, the respect and reverence of true
Christians; and towards this King, the obedience and
submission of faithful subjects.

" 50. Jesus answered and said unto him, Because
I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig-tree, be-
lievest thou ? thou shalt see greater things than
these."

When a man has once opened his heart to faith,
his faith continually grows stronger by means of new
proofs. God at first makes faith depend upon very
small things, to subject and humble the minds of
men, and to convince them that it is a gift of God;
he afterwards comforts and encourages them, by giv-
ing them a sight of the greater wonders of religion,
to manifest his goodness and magnificence towards
those who resign themselves up entirely to him.

CHAPTER II. 189

<c 51. And he saith unto him, Verily, verily, I
say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open,
and the angels of God ascending and descending
upon the Son of man."

The homage and service of angels paid to Christ,
both before his death, and at his resurrection and
ascension, show plainly that he is more than Son of
man. The more men put their trust and confidence
in God, like true Israelites, the more he is pleased
to increase it by the hopes of the greatest blessings.
What good news, what mighty consolation is this, for
us as well as for this new disciple, that heaven, shut
up so long, is now going to be opened to men, in
favour of this heavenly person, who is Son of God
as well as Son of man ; that the correspondence be-
tween heaven and earth is about to be restored; that
this man who converses on earth is King of heaven,
since the angels who dwell there pay him homage;
and that he is himself the way which leads thither,
the truth which promises and secures to us the enjoy-
ment, and the life which makes the happiness and
felicity of that place !

CHAPTER II.

Sect. I. — The Marriage in Cana.

" 1. And the third day there was a marriage in
Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there."

This is a blessed marriage indeed, at which the
greatest example of purity, modesty, and humility
is present, and inspires these three virtues; whereas,
generally speaking, immodesty, excess, and pride,

190 ST. JOHN.

render marriages criminal and unhappy. The mother
of Jesus is there the first, because she is the pattern
of all Christian mothers, whose discretion contributes
most to make a holy and Christian marriage by the
good education of their daughters. They who enter
into this state ought to take her for their pattern, as
being the most discreet and modest of virgins, the
most holy of all wives, and the first Christian mother.
" 2. And both Jesus was called, and his disciples,
to the marriage."

To call Christ to our marriages, is to draw down
his Holy Spirit on them by prayer : to invite his dis-
ciples thereto, is to observe in them his maxims and
doctrine, to use such behaviour as becomes his dis-
ciples, and to follow the rules of his church. How
unhappy generally are marriages, when Jesus Christ is
not at them, when they are entered into upon nothing
but human and carnal motives, upon views of ambi-
tion, pleasure, or covetousness, and with a conduct
and behaviour altogether profane and heathenish !
To do thus, is to drive Christ from them, instead of
inviting him to them. A good Christian takes care,
in like manner, to invite him to all other assemblies
or meetings, either for entertainment, for public or
domestic, civil or ecclesiastical affairs, or which relate
either to learning or to charity.

" 3. And when they wanted wine, the mother of
Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine."

It is an excellent disposition for persons to repre-
sent only their real wants and necessities to God in
prayer, after her example, with plainness, modesty,
charity} and confidence. Does not the conduct of
the blessed virgin on this occasion give us reason to

CHAPTER II. 191

think, that she used to represent to her Son the ne-
cessities of the poor, or those of her own family ?
Let us profit by this example which she has given
us, of confidence in God under wants and necessities,
and of fidelity in employing our credit in behalf of
the poor, when we are not able to relieve them our-
selves.

" 4. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I
to do with thee ? mine hour is not yet come."

In this answer of Christ we behold an example of
a perfect disengagement from flesh and blood, and
even from the most pious parents, with respect to
divine matters and the ecclesiastical ministry. He
chooses rather to treat his holy mother with some
seeming harshness, than to neglect giving in her per-
son this important advice to all parents, that they
must not pretend to direct the actions of their chil-
dren in those things which relate to their vocation or
ecclesiastical functions, or to put them upon doing
something very eminent and remarkable, merely to
gain honour and reputation to themselves. Let us
admire and imitate this edifying humility of the blessed
virgin, who speaks not one word in her own justifica-
tion, submitting to this reproof with silence, but
without losing her confidence in him. Jesus, on his
side, is faithful in his dependence upon God, even to
a moment. This moment was not anticipated, but
was made to depend on the request of the blessed
virgin, and the obedience of the servants.

" 5. His mother saith unto the servants, What-
soever he saith unto you, do it."

Confidence increases by a humiliation received
as it ought, and is weakened or destroyed by the
contrary.

192 ST. JOHN.

" 6. And there were set there six water-pots of
stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews,
containing two or three firkins apiece. 7. Jesus saith
unto them, Fill the water-pots with water. And
they filled them up to the brim. 8. And he saith
unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the gover-
nor of the feast. And they bare it."

These people want wine, and Jesus calls for
water : but he who speaks is the Creator both of
water and of wine, and changes every year the former
into the latter in the vine. An implicit and ready
obedience obtains the greatest favours and graces ;
of which men often render themselves unworthy, by
despising or neglecting things which seem either
trivial or improper, upon which God has notwith-
standing been pleased to make those favours and
graces depend.

" 9. When the ruler of the feast had tasted the
water that was made wine, and knew not whence it
was, (but the servants which drew the water knew,)
the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,"

Let us humbly offer up our addresses to Christ,
to obtain, not the change of water into wine, but the
conversion of our corrupt heart into one truly Chris-
tian ; not temporal advantages and enjoyments, which
are flat, insipid, unstable, and glide away and are lost
in the earth like water ; but the gifts of grace, that
fruit of the vine, of the blood and merits of Christ,
that wine which renders virgins fruitful in good
works. Lord, thou knowest what my soul of itself
is, even weakness itself; and that the wine of thy
grace is its whole strength.

" 10. And saith unto him, Every man at the be-

CHAPTER II. 193

ginning doth set forth good wine ; and when men
have well drunk, then that which is worse: hut thou
hast kept the good wine until now."

God gave at first the old wine of the law, without
strength, spirit, or taste; and in the fulness of time,
he gave the new wine, of a strong and powerful
grace, which enables us to fulfil the law, which ine-
briates the heart in a holy manner, and causes it to
forget all present things. Let us desire, pray for,
and taste this wine of our heart, which is so neces-
sary to our salvation. This is the wine of the mar-
riage of the Lamb, a marriage begun in the incarna-
tion, by the union of the Word with our nature;
continued and brought to perfection in the sanctifi-
cation of sinners, by their being incorporated ;vith
Christ; finished and consummated in heaven, by the
union of all the elect with their Head, and the com-
pletion of the adoption of God's children in the
bosom of the Father.

M 11. This beginning of miracles did Jesus in
Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory ; and
his disciples believed on him."

We must honour this adorable beginning, and
these first-fruits of the miracles of Christ. The end
of miracles is not to satisfy the curiosity of men, nor
to support and comfort the body, but to promote the
glory of God, and to establish the faith. This
miracle was wrought for the new disciples of the
Christian church, and to establish the belief of
Christ's almighty power, as the foundation of the
gospel.

Vol. III. I 57

194 ST. JOHN.

Sect. II. — The Buyers and Sellers driven out of the
Temple. The Body of Christ. He does not
trust himself to all men.

"12. 51 Alter this he went down to Capernaum,
he, and his mother, and his brethren, and his dis-
ciples; and they continued there not many days."

Jesus leaves his own country, to teach his minis-
ters, as the first thing, to wean themselves from
theirs, that they may be ready to go any whither.
He chooses Capernaum, to instruct them that they
ought not to prefer those places where they are likely
to find most convenience, but those where there is
most need of their presence. His mother aud his
brethren follow his example, to show that his minis-
ters ought rather to draw their relations after them
by their good example, than to suffer themselves to
be drawn aside by their carnal affection; and that,
in things pertaining to their ministry, they should
rather govern their relations, than be governed by
them.

" 13. % And the Jews' passover was at hand ; and
Jesus went up to Jerusalem, "

The constant attendance of Christ, even on the
external duties of religion, has the force of a law
obliging us constantly to attend on them. He ob-
serves the feasts, and obeys the law, when he could
at the same time have dispensed with it; and thereby
shames those who value themselves upon seeming to
be above these duties, through licentiousness, pride,
or negligence. He gives us, in his own person, the
pattern of a good parishioner and master of a family,
who obliges his children and domestics to an exact

CHAPTER II. 195

observance of these duties. What business can ex-
cuse those who make that a pretence for not perform-
ing the duties of a parishioner, since the Son of God
himself has set them such an example? We must
imitate it, by applying ourselves on these occasions to
such things as will promote the glory of God and
the good of our neighbour.

" 14. And found in the temple those that sold
oxen, and sheep, and doves, and the changers of
money sitting:"

It is very remarkable, that both the first and the
last time that our blessed Lord was in the temple
after he was baptized, he signalized his zeal against
the irreverence and profanation which the Jews were
guilty of therein. Will not the example of our
High Priest awaken the zeal of all those who are in-
vested with his authority, against so many profaners
of the churches, where the majesty of God resides,
and the true sacrifice is offered? Profane, unpro-
fitable, and criminal discourse, indecent postures, a
scandalous unseemliness in dress, lascivious glances,
meetings about business, sinful assignations, and
vain, extravagant, and wicked thoughts, these are
much more insupportable in the sight and in the
temple of God, than either those creatures which
were designed for sacrifices, or than the bare trading
in things of the like nature.

" 15. And when he had made a scourge of small
cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the
sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers'
money, and overthrew the tables;"

Nothing kindles the wrath of Christ more, than
the merchandise and profanation of holy things, and

I 2

196 ST. JOHN.

the insolence of those who dare be guilty thereof,
even in the house of God. For a man to go on
purpose to commit new sins in that very place,
whither he ought to go to bewail and expiate the
old, is no other than to mock God Almighty. If
all those who profane the Christian temples by their
irreverence, were to be driven out thence, how few
would remain therein !

** 16. And said unto them that sold doves, Take
these things hence : make not my Father's house an
house of merchandise.,,

Can we believe this truth, and avoid trembling
out of respect and reverence, when we enter into
churches? Whatever either has no relation, or is
contrary to religion, prayer, adoration, the worship
of God, and the sanctification of souls, ought to be
banished from those places which are consecrated to
the divine Holiness alone. They who come into
them, to sell the word of God, the exercise of the
sacred ministry, prayer, and the praise of God, hav-
in<y nothing in view but human glory, recompense,
temporal advantages, and raising a fortune, these are
no other than sacrilegious sellers and changers, who
ought to be cast out of the true temple.

" J7. And his disciples remembered that it was
written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up."
We must not, in the heat of zeal, lay aside Chris-
tian meekness ; but then we must likewise take great
care that we do not grow lukewarm and indifferent,
under the specious pretence of meekness and charity.
Christ here informs us, that the zeal of God's house
is, as it were, the proper virtue belonging to pastors.
A man is a Christian for himself; he becomes a pas-

CHAPTER II. 197

tor for the benefit of his neighbour ; but without
zeal he can do him no service. The church is the
house of God, and whatever tends to promote the
holiness and interests thereof, is the proper business
of his ministers. If a pastor, as he ought, looks
upon the soul of the meanest of his sheep as the
house of God, can he possibly see the disorder and
filthiness thereof, and not use his utmost endeavour
to cleanse it ? To be only zealous, is not sufficient
in a pastor ; he must have an ardent zeal, which, as
it were, continually feeds upon and eats him up; but
such as is guided and directed by the wisdom of
God.

" 18. % Then answered the Jews, and said unto
him, What sign showest thou unto us, seeing that
thou doest these things?"

Pastors must expect to meet with contradiction,
when they endeavour to correct disorders and to re-
form abuses. Every body has a right to exclaim
against public and visible disorders, when the pastors,
instead of opposing them, countenance and promote
them. The Jews require a sign or miracle : and is
it not a very great one, that Christ should, without
any visible authority, make men obey him so readily,
aud strike such a terror into them, only with a
scourge of small cords ! Is not this enough to show
the presence of the Divinity ? The miracle which
must authorise and justify the zeal of all pastors, is an
exemplary and truly apostolic life.

" 19. Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy
this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."

See here a terrible judgment upon those who op-
pose that which is good. God leaves them in their

198 ST. JOHN.

darkness and ignorance, with respect both to that
good and to their own sins. Men show very plainly
that they love sin, when they will not suffer any one
to put a stop to it, to remove the occasions thereof,
and to reprove and punish the sinner. This is a
sin which draws after it greater sins, and punishments
proportionable to them; and especially that of not
knowing either the one or the other. The destruc-
tion of the true temple of God by the death of Jesus
Christ, was the punishment of the pride, envy, and
avarice of the Jews, which made them take the part
of these profaners of the figurative temple.

" 20. Then said the Jews, Forty and six years
was this temple in building, and wilt thou rear it up
in three days?"

It is not at all surprising that the Jews understood
not the figurative words of Christ : but it was the
hardness of their hearts which rendered them un-
worthy to be more clearly and plainly instructed.
Christ, at the very beginning of his preaching, estab-
lishes beforehand the belief of his death and resur-
rection. It frequently happens that an instruction
proves of more advantage to others in succeeding times,
than to those to whom it was at first addressed.

" 21. But he spake of the temple of his body."

The body and soul of Jesus Christ are the true
temple of God, in which he dwells, where he receives
the true worship and adoration, and where all reli-
gion is to be found in its truth and reality. How
much light does this obscure and figurative expres-
sion contain, and afford to all those who have the
eyes and attention of faith ! Whatever respect, zeal,
and affection the Jews had for their temple, that, and

CHAPTER II. 199

infinitely more, ought Christians to have for the
humanity of Christ, the true and adorable temple of
his divinity. Let us present ourselves before it in
spirit, let us be united to it in heart; let us turn all
our thoughts, desires, and sighs toward this temple,
during our banishment and captivity; as the Jews,
while they were captive, directed all theirs toward
the temple at Jerusalem.

" 22. When therefore he was risen from the dead,
his disciples remembered that he had said this unto
them; and they believed the scripture, and the word
which Jesus had said."

The completion of mysteries opens the under-
standing to the knowledge of the Scriptures, and
strengthens faith. Truths bring forth fruit in their
season. The slowness and backwardness of some
understandings, should not hinder us from instructing
them whenever we have an opportunity. Truth is
a seed which grace will cause to blossom at God's
appointed time. Now is the proper time to read the
Scriptures, and therein to adore with comfort the
mysteries fully accomplished, the veracity of God in
his word, and his faithfulness in respect of his pro-
mises— and yet we neglect to read them ! The Jews
will rise in judgment against us, and condemn us.

" 23. 5| NoWj when he was in Jerusalem at the
passover, in the feast-day, many believed in his name,
when they saw the miracles which he did."

Christ here keeps his passover in his own manner,
and causes some of his elect to keep it also, in caus-
ing them to pass from incredulity to faith, by the an-
ticipated merits of his blood. This is to communi-
cate in the Christian passover by way of anticipation.

200 ST. JOHN.

The miracles which Christ so lately refused to the
obstinacy and envy of the Jews, he now vouchsafes
to grant to his elect, in order to accomplish his de-
signs concerning them. Let us learn to do all the
service we can to souls, when God is pleased to give
us opportunity; and let us not be at all concerned
at the offence taken by such pharisaical persons, as
shut up the way of salvation against themselves.

" 24. But Jesus did not commit * himself unto
them, because he knew all men," [# Fr. Trust.]

Mysteries are not to be revealed but with wis-
dom and discretion, in measure and by degrees ; nor
the body and blood of Christ to be given to men
without great judgment. Christian prudence re-
quires that we should neither hastily condemn any
one, nor inconsiderately trust all upon specious ap-
pearances. Man does not thoroughly know, but fre-
quently deceives himself; how then should others
avoid being often deceived by him ? We have no
right to search into the heart ; but we have a right,
through the grace of Christ, to beg of him some
portion of his light, to secure us from being deceived,
and to enable us to know our neighbour so far as
our duties and necessities require.

" 25. And needed not that any should testify of
man : for he knew what was in man."

It would be the vainest thing imaginable for any
one to pretend to hide himself from Christ : he sees
the very bottom of the heart, and knows us better
than we do ourselves. What respect and caution
should a person observe in all his actions, who is
assured that God continually beholds his heart ! It
is a double kindness and advantage to man, that he

CHAPTER III. 201

has no knowledge of the secrets of the heart, which
his curiosity would cause him to abuse ; and that he
is capable of receiving as much as is necessary, at
the hand of him who dispenses every thing with a
sovereign wisdom.

CHAPTER III.

Sect. I. — Nicodemtis. We must be born of the
Spirit. The Wind bloweth where it listeth.

" 1. There was a man of the Pharisees, named
Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews : 2. The same came
to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we
know that thou art a teacher come from God : for
no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except
God be with him."

We must not discourage those who come to
Christ, though they may lie under a great many im-
perfections, and have not yet courage enough to serve
him openly : but we must endeavour to instruct them,
and to manage prudently the first beginnings of their
faith or piety. This received principle among the
Jews, that it is God who speaks by miracles, and
that an extraordinary mission ought to be authorized
thereby, will condemn heretics. When a man seeks
truth sincerely and in earnest, upon such principles
as are generally acknowledged, he is not far from
finding it. The corruption of the heart is a greater
obstacle thereto than the prepossession of the mind.
Christ is indeed the teacher of the true righteous-
ness promised by the Scriptures, and foretold by the
prophecies : but he teaches it in a manner very dif-

i 3

202 ST. JOHN.

ferent from that which this ruler imagines; since he
does it by putting it into the heart, and causing the
heart to enjoy and love it. He does not only teach
it as a person come from God, but he teaches it as
God : and God is not only with him, but he himself
is God. Teach me in this manner, O Jesus, my
Saviour, my Master, and my God !

" 3. Jesus answered and said unto him. Verily,
verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again,
he cannot see the kingdom of God."

The first step towards returning to God, is to
renounce our birth derived from Adam, and to be
born again in Jesus Christ. We must afterwards
renounce ourselves, our will, our inclinations, and
the presumption we have of our own strength, that
we may receive new from Jesus Christ. The know-
ledge of the corruption of our nature, and of the
necessity of cur being renewed bv Christ, is the verv
first thing which we must learn in the Christian re-
liilion.

" 4. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man
be born when he is old ? can he enter the second
time into his mother's womb, and be born ?"

Let us not at all wonder that our reason is very
difficultly persuaded to submit to the belief of mys-
teries. The ways of God are incomprehensible, and
his mysteries full of contradictions to carnal minds,
and to a Jewish understanding. It is good for a
man at first to comprehend little or nothing in reli-
gion, that he may be convinced of the necessity of a
light superior, but not contrary, to that of reason.
We have here a plain proof that man is become al-
- together carnal, in that this ruler thinks of nothing

CHAPTER III. 203

but a natural mother, and a birth according to the
flesh, instead of reflecting, that he whom he owns to
be a teacher sent from God for the salvation of souls,
could not speak of any other thing but the new birth
of the soul, and the reformation of the heart.

" 5. Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto
thee, Except a man be born of water, and of the
Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."

We have all received this new, divine, and spiri-
tual birth ; wherein God himself, by the virtue of
his Holy Spirit, is to us as a father; and the church,
represented by the water, receives us into her bosom
as our mother. Baptism gives us a right to the
kingdom of God, provided we live like children of
God, and members of Christ, in being obedient to
his Spirit.

" 6. That which is born of the flesh is flesh :
and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."

Let us always remember, that our spiritual birth
obliges us to lead a spiritual life. We consist ot
two men, which make but one; the one carnal, born
after a carnal, the other spiritual, born after a spiri-
tual manner. What a shame is it, that " that
which is born of the flesh" should subject and govern
the spiritual man, and render it carnal, instead of our
subduing and mortifying whatever there is in us which
is carnal and corrupt !

" 7. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must
be born again."

Adam, being a sinner, could beget only sinners,
and propagate no other inclinations but such as tend
to sin. It belongs to thee, O holy Jesus ! as the
principle of our new life, to give us thy Spirit, and

204 ST. JOHN.

to inspire into us thy spiritual and holy inclinations.
He who is thoroughly sensible of the corruption of the
heart of man, is far from wondering that it is neces-
sary for him to be changed into a new man, and that
he must receive a new spirit, a new heart, and anew
principle of life and action. It is this new birth
which gives us a right, on all occasions, to pray for
the new Spirit.

" 8. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou
hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence
it cometh, and whither it goeth : so is every one that
is born of the Spirit."

He who is fully convinced of this truth, that grace
is due to no person whatever, and that the distribu-
tion of the gifts of God's Holy Spirit, in order to
make us his children and spiritual men, proceeds
solely from his will and mercy, such a person takes
the greatest care to live in a constant course of humi-
lity and gratitude. A true Christian is a great won-
der, and an incomprehensible mystery : for we see
such a one renouncing and hating himself, and con-
tinually opposing all his inclinations, without seeing
either the principle which puts him in action, or the
end at which he aims, or the reward for which he
hopes. That person who sees with no other eyes
but those of the flesh, cannot possibly perceive that
which the Spirit works in the heart of him who is
born of the Spirit. Lord, it is from thee that this
Spirit proceeds, which alone searches the deep things
of God, which renders invisible mysteries visible to
the eyes of faith, makes future enjoyments present to
our hope, and causes charity to perform things other-
wise impossible.

CHAPTER III. 205

" 9. Nicodemus answered and said unto him,
How can these things be ?"

The spirit of man is always opposing and contra-
dicting the Spirit of God ; and would fain know the
manner of his conduct and operation in the heart.
It is not for them who believe in an almighty God,
to be under any apprehension lest he should find
something impossible to be accomplished in his de-
signs concerning our salvation, and in the methods of
his grace. Nicodemus was excusable, considering
the time in which he lived : Christians cannot have
the least excuse, after so many ages of miracles and
wonders.

" 10. Jesus answered and said unto him, Art
thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these
things ?"

The learning of men is always accompanied with
great ignorance : and yet they are puffed up there-
with. The gospel humbles the learned, and com-
forts the simple. The humble and teachable faith of
the poor in spirit makes all difficulties easy; whereas
the presumptuous confidence of the masters of the
law blinds them, and renders every thing incredible
to them. Would to God there were not many to be
found, who pass their lives, like this Pharisee, in the
study of the Scripture; and yet, like him, are igno-
rant of the true intent, mysteries, and end thereof,
which is Jesus Christ !

206 ST. JOHN.

Sect. II. — Christ alone hath ascended up to Hea-
ven. The Brazen Serpent a Type of Christ.
The Son sent to save the World. He who doeth
Evil, hateth the Light.

" 11. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak
that we do know, and testify that we have seen ; and
ye receive not our witness."

Christ alone knows, and can teach the mysteries
of eternity, and the conduct of God in respect of
souls. Whenever we read the gospel, we must re-
member that it is the Son of God who speaks therein
concerning the things of God; that, by the preroga-
tive of his eternal birth, he is light of light, truth it-
self, and the fountain of all knowledge; and that, in
his mission and temporal birth, and in virtue of the
union of his soul with the eternal WTord, he received
a perfect knowledge of the designs and ways of God,
and of the whole economy ot grace, of which he is
the sovereign dispenser. It is a shame and reproach
to human reason, that it frequently admits and re-
ceives, without any difficulty, the witness of a stranger
and an impostor, and yet cannot be persuaded to re-
ceive that of truth itself.

" 12. If I have told you earthly things, and ye
believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you of
heavenly things ?"

In order to obtain the gift of understanding, we
must humble ourselves, and submit our reason to the
yoke of faith ; without which there is nothing but
darkness with respect to mysteries. Those which
come to pass in time, though they be spiritual,
are yet earthly in comparison with those which are

CHAPTER III. 207

eternal. One of the first doubts and first evangeli-
cal instructions recorded by John, relates to the
wonderful and mysterious operation of the Spirit of
God in changing the heart of man : of so great im-
portance is it to be instructed in this matter. Let
us not imitate the incredulity of this disciple. That
which we believe concerning the heavenly mysteries
concealed in the bosom of God, should dispose us to
believe that which he is able to perform in the heart
of man upon earth.

" 13. And no man hath ascended up to heaven,
but he that came down from heaven, even the Son
of man which is in heaven."

The secrets of heaven do not come within the
compass of human reason. He only among men has
the key of them, who, as Son of God, is in heaven.
We must therefore unite ourselves to him by faith,
which alone transports us to heaven, and discovers to
us the mysteries of that place. No person is born
again, raised to a new life, and ascends up to heaven,
but only in Jesus Christ, of whom he is made a mem-
ber by baptism, and together with whom he makes
but one Christ. O union ! O unity ! which we
shall never be able to comprehend, to esteem, and to
love enough.

" 14. ^f And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the
wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted
up;

This is the second prediction of the undeserved
death of Christ on the cross, by his applying to him-
self the type of the serpent which had neither life nor
venom. Though he bore only the resemblance of
sinful flesh, yet he bore the real curse denounced

208 ST. JOHN.

against it in his body upon the cross. But, O God !
into how great a blessing is this curse changed for
all those sinners who put their whole trust and con-
fidence therein ! It is by the virtue of the cross of
Christ that we receive faith, that we are made his
members, and that we have a right to heaven ; but
it is by our crucifying ourselves with him that all
this is accomplished in us.

" 15. That whosoever believeth in him should not
perish, but have eternal life."

The fruit of Christ's death and passion is the life
of faith ; and the fruit of faith is, to cause us to find
in him a deliverance from the death of sin and of
hell, and whatever is necessary to our attaining to that
life which he has merited for us by his cross. O
cross of my Saviour, my only refuge, the cradle as it
were of my faith, the origin of my salvation, and the
source of eternal life ! Ungrateful is he, and an
enemy to his own happiness, who loves not to turn
his intellectual eyes towards thee, there to adore his
life crucified, and to find there the death of all his
passions.

" 16. ^[ For God so loved the world, that he gave
his only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in
him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

How many, how great and important truths, how
many mysteries are here presented to the faith of a
Christian ! Somewhat more than faith is requisite
to comprehend them ; there must be more than all
the love we can possibly have on earth, to answer the
love of God, who gives, not an angel, but his only-
begotten Son ; who gives him to his creatures, to
sinners, and to his enemies; and who, by giving

CHAPTER III. 209

him, reduces him as it were to nothing, that they
may not perish by his justice. It is in the bosom of
God himself that we must seek for the reason of his
mercies, and for the causes of salvation. The first
of God's gifts is his love ; the first gift of his love to
the sinner is his Son ; the first gift of his Son is
faith; and faith is the root of all other graces, the
principle of the new life, and the key which shuts up
hell, and opens the gate of heaven.

" 17. For God sent not his Son into the world
to condemn the world ; but that the world through
him might be saved."

The first coming of the Son of God is in order to
save the world : miserable is that person who renders
it ineffectual to himself, and turns it into a judgment
by his infidelity. It is our own sin which condemns
us; it is the grace of Christ which saves us: in him
alone then must we place our whole trust and con-
fidence. Lord, this world which through thee is to
be saved, seek it, I beseech thee, at the very bottom
of my heart.

" 18. % He that believeth on him is not con-
demned : but he that believeth not is condemned
already, because he hath not believed in the name
of the only-begotten Son of God."

Whoever by means of faith is not in Jesus Christ,
continues still in Adam, and is under his condemna-
tion. The true justifying faith is neither the false
confidence of heretics, nor the dead and barren faith
of such among the orthodox as lead wicked lives ;
but it is that which changes the heart, and causes it
to love and embrace the maxims of the gospel. We
do not believe in the name of our blessed Saviour as

210 ST. JOHN.

we ought, if we walk not in the way of the gospel:
we have nothing but a false and deceitful confidence
in Christ, when we are not obedient to his word.

11 19. And this is the condemnation, that light is
come into the world, and men loved darkness rather
than light, because their deeds were evil."

The greatest misfortune of men does not consist
in their being subject to sin, corruption, and blind-
ness ; but in their rejecting the deliverer, the phy-
sician, and even light itself. Nothing more plainly
discovers the corruption of the world, and affords
greater cause to dread the wrath of God, than to see
men's opposition to the light continually increase, the
more abundantly he is pleased to diffuse and manifest
it abroad. The love of darkness is always disguised
under a pretended love of light : and it is the great
and just judgment of God, both upon particular
persons and whole nations, to give them over to this
reprobate mind, which takes light for darkness, and
darkness for light.

" 20. For every one that doeth evil hateth the
light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds
should be reproved."

There are three degrees of blindness. The first
is, when passion causes men to prefer the darkness
of sin before the light of truth. The second, when
the love of sin renders truth itself disagreeable and
odious to us. And the third, when men keep at a
distance, fly from it, persecute, suppress, and stifle
it as a dangerous evil. The love of the gospel and
of the great principles of Christian morality, grows
and increases in a heart, in proportion as it disengages
itself from sin, and as it really loves and practises

CHAPTER III. 211

virtue. On the contrary, men always find the gos-
pel too severe, the most necessary truths too hard,
and the Christian morality carried too high, and full
of mortifying discouragements, when they will not
renounce those passions which are condemned there-
by. A man who is notoriously profligate, frequently
judges better in this case, than a proud hypocrite,
who would at the same time enjoy both the reputa-
tion of piety, and the pleasure of his passions.

"21. But he that doeth truth comet h to the light,
that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are
wrought in God."

True Christians are the children of light, and the
disciples of truth ; and it is their joy, continually to
walk by the most pure light of the gospel, and to
regulate their actions by the most substantial truths
of Christianity. He who seeks God alone, and re-
solves to do nothing but according to his Spirit, is
very far from having any apprehension that he shall
know the law of God too well, and discover too much
of the holiness of his ways. Those who seek the
glory and applause of the world, come to the light
thereof, and expose their actions thereto : those who,
in performing good works, love only the grace of
God, which is the principle; his will, which is the
rule; and his glory, which is the end of them; are
likewise desirous to have them examined by his light,
that they may praise him for what is found good in
them, that they may condemn what is bad, and that
they may improve and complete whatever is defective
and imperfect.

212 ST. JOHN.

Sect. III. — John the friend of the bridegroom.
The Spirit given to the Son without measure.

11 22. After these things came Jesus and his
disciples into the land of Judea; and there he tarried
with them, and baptized."

Jesus trains his disciples up to labour, and does
not suffer them to continue in idleness. It is he
who baptizes by his disciples, because they do it by
his appointment, in his presence, and perhaps with
his baptism ; how much more certainly does he bap-
tize, when his baptism is given by the ministers of
his church, which is his body, which acts by his
Spirit, and which lives and subsists only in him ? It
is of great use for men to have this truth present to
their minds, whenever they either administer or re-
ceive the sacraments, that they may bring along with
them that faith and reverence which they ought.

" 23. % And John also was baptizing in iEnon,
near to Salim, because there was much water there;
and they came, and were baptized: 24. For John
was not yet cast into prison."

We ought to labour in the work of God until we
fall under an impossibility of performing it, according
to John's example. His labours are terminated by
imprisonment and death; and he foresaw that this
would be the consequence of them. How few evan-
gelical workmen would there be in the church, if
they expected nothing else from the world ! Im-
prisonment, which is the fruit of a holy freedom in
preaching the truth, is the seed of that perfect liberty
and freedom which we shall enjoy in the very source
and fountain thereof.

CHAPTER III. 213

" 25. % Then there arose a question between some
of John's disciples and the Jews about purifying."

Emulation betwixt the disciples of different mas-
ters, how holy soever those masters may be, is an
evil which is always to be feared. It is not a new
thing for persons to be divided by disputes concern-
ing repentance, instead of agreeing to perform it in
the spirit of charity. To discover who is in the
wrong in these disputes, we need only observe on
which side emulation and interest may chiefly lie.

" 26. And they came unto John, and said unto
him, Rabbi, he that was with thee beyond Jordan,
to whom thou barest witness, behold, the same bap-
tizeth, and all men come to him.',

How difficult is it to secure ourselves from too
human a fondness and affection for a spiritual guide
or director, when he has gained a considerable re-
putation ! This affection appears plainly to be such,
when we do not rejoice so much at the good which
is done by others, as at that which we see him do.
Self-love divides and distracts the heart with contrary
desires. One sort of vanity would fain have imita-
tors and followers; another cannot endure them:
charity and humility agree to desire none but for the
sake of God. " All men come to him :" these are
words of envy and emulation. Alas! what mischiefs
has this vice caused in the church; and how many
does it still cause therein ! How much good has it
obstructed ! How many souls has it destroyed !

" 27. John answered and said, A man can receive
nothing, except it be given him from heaven."

Let us never forget this great principle of Chris-
tian humility — that every good thing comes from

214 ST. JOHN.

God. If there were any good in man, any pious
motion in his heart which is not M given him from
heaven," it would be sufficient to entitle him to
ascribe to himself all the consequences thereof.
Every grace, every vocation has its bounds and limits :
and no person ought to raise himself above his own.
An humble and wise director of souls ought fre-
quently to inculcate into his disciples this rule — that
they must not set their affections upon him or his
talents, but upon God, from whom they are derived.

" 28. Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said,
I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him."

How great honour soever it may be for a minister
of the church to be sent as the ambassador of God,
and the harbinger of Jesus Christ, he has still more
reason to humble himself than to be puffed up on that
account : for this office is not merely a post of honour,
but a laborious commission and employment. A man
is not made a bishop to receive the homage due to
God ; but to see it paid to him, and to prepare his
way by instruction, prayer, and good example.

" 29. He that hath the bride is the bridegroom :
but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and
heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bride-
groom's voice. This my joy therefore is fulfilled."

The church belongs to Christ, and not to particu-
lar pastors. Spiritual directors ought to look upon
souls as the spouses or brides of Christ, and to hearken
to his voice, that they may guide and direct them as
they ought. They must not be jealous on the ac-
count of any extraordinary favours which he shows
them ; and they must rejoice, when he either puts
them into the hands of others, or takes them under

CHAPTER III. 215

his own immediate direction, and guides them in
such a manner as is above their reach, and by ways
which, though they do not comprehend, yet they see
plainly are the ways of God. There can be no
greater joy to a pastor, than to see, by the edification
of his flock, that the Bridegroom speaks to the hearts
thereof, and that it is really his in quality of his
spouse.

" 30. He must increase, but I must decrease."

A true pastor has nothing at heart but the increase
of the glory of Christ : his own consists in promoting
that at the expense of all things. The more he is
humbled for his master's sake, the more serviceable
and useful is he both to him and his work. Humi-
liation never surprises or afflicts him, who, like John,
continually expects it, and is disposed to sacrifice his
reputation, as well as his life, to advance the kingdom
of the Son of God.

" 31. He that cometh from above is above all:
he that is of the earth is earthly, and speaketh of
the earth : he that cometh from heaven is above all."

The divinity, birth, and divine mission of Christ,
are the three sources of the holiness and authority of
his words. Man of himself has nothing but what is
low and mean in his words and thoughts ; and no-
thing but what is great, sublime, and heavenly, when,
leaving himself and his own darkness, he by faith en-
ters into Jesus Christ and his light. We all carry
within ourselves two men of a very different nature ;
the one heavenly, the other earthly : and it is the
great design of God to make them one, in renewing
sanctifying, and rendering the earthly man happy, by
the spirit, in the body, and according to the pattern

216 ST. JOHN.

of the heavenly man. Grant, Lord, that I may shut
my ears against every thing which the children of
this world have to suggest to me concerning earthly
things; and that the ears of my heart may be con-
tinually open to those divine truths, which thou
earnest from heaven to reveal to us, O heavenly Man,
who art also God !

" 32. And what he hath seen and heard, that he
testifieth ; and no man receiveth his testimony."

These words afford us a true idea of faith and of
incredulity. To believe, or not to believe, is no
other than to receive or reject the testimony which
the Son of God gives concerning what he has seen
and heard ; that is, concerning what he knows, by
that divine knowledge which he received from his
Father, when, by his eternal birth, he received of
him his essence ; a knowledge communicated by the
incarnation to the God-man, in whom are hid all the
treasures of divine knowledge and wisdom. What
punishment does not the incredulous person deserve,
who judges the Son of God less worthy of credit and
belief than the most inconsiderable eye-witness among
men?

" 33. He that hath received his testimony hath
set to his seal that God is true."

The faith of the elect, and of the whole church,
is, as it were, the seal of the truth of God's word,
and of his fidelity in his promises. What blasphemy
is there more horrid than to give the lie to truth it-
self, and to say that God is a liar ! And does not
every man do this, who refuses to receive the truth
delivered by the Son of God, whose miracles evi-
dently proved him to be such ?

CHAPTER III. 217

54 34. For he whom God hath sent speaketh the
words of God : for God giveth not the Spirit by
measure unto him."

Observe here the excellency of Christ's mission,
and how it differed from that of the prophets. The
first difference is, that God spoke to them by inter-
vals ; whereas he speaks continually in his Son, be-
cause this Son is God. The second difference is,
that the prophets spoke by an inspiration which was
borrowed, transient, and "given by measure;" where-
as he spoke by the Holy Ghost, who is his own Spi-
rit, who inseparably dwells in him, and by the pos-
session of whose fulness he receives his unction and
consecration. What respect and reverence ought we
to have when we read the gospel ! To do it as we
ought, we must beg a portion of this Spirit, whose
fulness is the source of the divine, adorable, and
sanctifying word.

** 35. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given
all things into his hand."

The third difference betwixt the mission of Christ
and that of the prophets is, that God loved the pro-
phets as his servants; but that he loves Christ as his
only Son, and communicates himself to him in pro-
portion to his love. The fourth difference is, that
the prophets had only particular commissions, limited
to a certain time, and to certain purposes; but that
Christ has full power given him, as the general dis-
poser of all his Father's works, the executor of his
designs, the head of his church, the universal high
priest of his good things to come, the steward and
dispenser of all his graces, the Saviour of his people,
and the only way which leads to truth and life. Lord,

Vol. III. K 57

218 ST. JOHN.

I desire not either to take any step towards these, or
to arrive at them, any other way than by thee. My
salvation is in thy hand. My joy is to depend upon
thee.

" 36. He that believeth on the Son hath ever-
lasting life : and he that believeth not the Son
shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on
him."

It is by faith that Christ dwells in our hearts ;
and to have him there, is to have everlasting life.
To believe in Jesus Christ, is not barely to give
credit to what he reveals; but it is to put our whole
trust and confidence in him, as the only Mediator of
salvation, by the merits of his blood, and by the
power of his grace. This faith is the seed of ever-
lasting life ; and both consist in knowing and loving
God, imperfectly here below, perfectly in heaven. A
lively faith renders the enjoyments of the world to
come present even in this life; but glory will render
them visible. There is no salvation, in any state
whatever, but only by Jesus Christ. Without him,
the sentence of death, pronounced against all man-
kind in Adam, would be put in execution without
mercy; because there is no mercy to be had but
through Jesus Christ. It is through thee alone
that I entreat, hope for, and expect it, O thou my
only and almighty Mediator !

CHAPTER IV. 219

CHAPTER IV.

Sect. IV. — The Woman of Samaria. The Water
springing up into Eternal Life. The Worship-
pers in Spirit and Truth.

" 1. When therefore the Lord knew how the
Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized
more disciples than John, 2. (Though Jesus him-
self baptized not, but his disciples,) 3. He left
Judea, and departed again into Galilee."

It is prudence and charity to take away all occa-
sions of envy and sin from the weak, and even from
the wicked, as much as possibly we can. There is
a time to give way to the enemies of the truth, and
a time to render it triumphant over them. It is a
very great grace not to mistake in this matter, and to
do nothing out of season. To avoid dangers on
some occasions, is a thing not only permitted, but it
is frequently, according to God's appointment, for the
interest of his glory, and consequently a part of per-
fection. To make an humble- retreat, is a thing
sometimes more difficult to nature than a stout and
glorious resistance. That person follows God who
does not expose himself to suffering before the time.
The residue of a pastor's life shows plainly enough,
whether he retired out of fearfulness, or out of faith-
fulness to his ministry.

" 4. And he must needs go through Samaria.
5. Then cometh he to a city of Samaria, which is
called Sychar, near to the parcel of ground that Jacob
gave to his son Joseph."

K 2

220 ST. JOHN.

One soul alone of the number of the elect, though
as yet buried in corruption, sometimes invites Christ,
and draws down the blessings of God upon a whole
country. Let us adore the zeal of the true Pastor,
who comes on purpose to seek his lost sheep. When
a man has no longer any opportunities of serving God
in a country* he must endeavour to find them in some
other place. It is no other than necessity, in all
appearance, which obliges Christ to pass by this
city; but, in reality, it is the eternal love of God
towards some particular souls therein, which he in-
tends to save. All ages are full of instances of this
nature ; but to observe the secret conduct of God in
them, an attentive faith is necessary.

" 6. Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus there-
fore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the
well : and it was about the sixth hour."

Christ by his toils and weariness obtains rest for
us. They are not mentioned without design. What
a sight to the eyes of faith, is a God wearied by his
incessant labours for the salvation of his creatures !
What return of duty does he not justly require of
us ! Let us at least be so faithful as to adore him
in this condition ; to give him thanks for wearying
himself in seeking us; and to imitate him, as occa-
sion requires, in bearing the fatigues of our employ-
ment or state of life; and sometimes even those of
journeys in union with his, and in reflecting on them
with reverence and respect. The rest of Jesus Christ
is as mysterious, and as full of kindness and benefi-
cence, as his weariness : for he waits for a soul which
was tired in the ways of sin, in order to give it rest.
It is a great matter for a man to learn how to rest

CHAPTER IV. 221

himself without being idle, and to make his necessary-
repose subservient to the glory of God.

" 7. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw
water. Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
8. (For his disciples were gone away into the city
to buy meat.)"

Jesus asks in order to give. A cup of cold water,
(where there is not ability to give more,) which he
asks and receives by the hand of a poor man, is per-
haps the occasion of salvation to him who gives it :
perhaps his salvation depends upon so small an alms.
Christ honours and sanctifies the state of those who
are forced to ask charity, by asking it himself. He
voluntarily reduces himself to such circumstances as
to want the assistance of his creatures, that we may
not be ashamed to have our dependence on them.
He here shows us the way, by common and ordinary
conversation, insensibly to introduce discourses con-
cerning piety and salvation. His divine thirst and
earnest desire to save souls, is that which is most
vehement, and to which he makes his bodily thirst
subservient. They are both to be adored and imi-
tated.

"9. Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him,
How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of
me, which am a woman of Samaria ? (for the Jews
have no dealings with the Samaritans.)''

When a soul is to be saved, we must not refuse
our cares and endeavours to the greatest sinners. If
we cannot be instrumental to the salvation of here-
tics, and have reason to apprehend that our own will
be endangered by them, the law of nature obliges us
to avoid them. Error, as well as vice, is a conta-

222 ST. JOHN.

gious disease. To converse familiarly with such as
may infect us with either, when we lie under no ne-
cessity nor obligation to do it, is no other than to
be willing to perish. How many precautions do we
generally take to secure the body — how few with
regard to the soul !

" 10. Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou
knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to
tbee, Give me to drink ; thou wouldest have asked
of him, and he would have given thee living water."

Jesus Christ is the great gift of God, and the
source of all other gifts. Such as this Samaritan
woman is, such is every sinner before the first ray of
divine light has shone in his heart. So far is she
from being able to deserve it, desire it, or ask for it,
that she rejects it, and has not the least suspicion
imaginable that she has any want of it. To be
admonished of our ignorance signifies but very little,
if God do not perform the rest. To know Jesus
Christ and the necessity of his grace, is the first step
toward conversion. His grace is living water, which
quenches our thirst after worldly riches and plea-
sures. Who would not incessantly desire and long
to drink thereof ! Frequent opportunities of re-
ceiving this water present themselves to us, and we
are not sensible of them. Disgrace, sickness, poverty,
and affliction, often bring along with them this pre-
cious gift, and yet we refuse them. Cause us, Lord,
to know this gift on all occasions, that we may esteem,
desire it, and pray for it, and that we may give all
we have to purchase and preserve it.

" 11. The woman saith unto him, Sir,* thou
hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep:

CHAPTER IV. 223

from whence then hast thou that living water ?"
[* Fr. Lord.]

The term " Lord," of which this woman makes
use, shows, that when God begins to speak to the
heart, he disposes it to hear, by making it sensible
of his presence, and imprinting thereon a great de-
gree of respect and reverence. And then it begins
to discover the greatness of his promises, and to per-
ceive that they cannot possibly be only carnal and
temporal : it sees plainly the weakness and inability
of nature, and the absolute necessity of supernatural
assistance.

" 12. Art thou greater than our father Jacob,
which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself,
and his children, and his cattle?"

What is the greatness of Jacob in comparison
with that of Christ, which Jacob himself adored in
the sign of the greatness of his son Joseph, a pro-
phetic sign of the kingdom of the Messias ! How
deep, O Jesus, is that well from whence thou draw-
est without measure the water of wisdom and grace,
the fulness whereof thou possessest, and of which
thou givest thy children and the whole flock of God
to drink !

" 13. Jesus answered and said unto her, Who-
soever drinketh of this water shall thirst again : 14.
But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall
give him shall never thirst;"

Christ here teaches us not to be diverted from
the subject in debate by personal reflections, when we
are engaged in conferences about religion, but to go
on convincing and instructing. These are terrible
words for those who are continually parched with

224 ST. JOHN.

thirst after earthly riches and enjoyments ! Of what
water have they drunk ?

" — But the water that I shall give him shall
be in him a well of water springing up into everlast-
ing life."

The dead and muddy water of earthly things only
inflames our thirst : grace, which is a clear and living
stream, and which alone can extinguish it, comes
from and returns to God, carrying us along with it,
and uniting us to him to all eternity. These words
are full of comfort to all such as have renounced the
love of false riches, and set their affections upon
those of heaven : for this is a proof that this water
is already in their heart, and a just ground for them
to hope that it will " spring up into everlasting life."

" 15. The woman saith unto him, Sir, give me
this water, that I thirst not, neither come hither to
draw."

To desire and pray for the grace and Spirit of
Christ, are the first steps toward conversion. This
desire, how imperfect soever it be in this woman, is,
notwithstanding, the effect of the internal operation
of grace, though nothing but what is merely human
appear in the manner of Christ's exciting this desire
in her heart. Let us admire this mixture and union
of the Spirit of God with external and human ap-
pearances, which honours the union of the divine
and human nature, and the divinely human operations
of the God-man. Do thou thyself, O Lord, raise
in me the desire of this divine water, that thou thy-
self mayest also satisfy the desire which thou hast
raised !

" 16. Jesus saith unto her, Go, call thy husband,
and come hither."

CHAPTER IV. 225

After these first desires, which began to stir and
awaken the sinner, God causes him to enter into his
own heart, to take a full view of himself, and to lay
his hand upon his own sores. That which is done
here by the words of Christ, is effected by accidental
meetings, reflections, and sermons in other sinners,
who find themselves most exposed to their own sight,
when they endeavour to flee from themselves with
the greatest care.

" 17. The woman answered and said, I have no
husband. Jesus said unto her, Thou hast well said,
I have no husband : 18. For thou hast had five
husbands ; and he whom thou now hast is not thy
husband : in that saidst thou truly."

It is to no purpose to endeavour to turn away our
eyes from ourselves, that we may not see our own
corruption. God sets it plainly before our eyes, when
he has undertaken to give us an abhorrence of it.
Every sinner in proportion is very glad to conceal
his failings from himself as much as possible, and to
avoid considering and reflecting upon them. Self-
love always blinds us in something or other which
regards our own persons, and continually opens to
us some secret door, to give us means and oppor-
tunity to steal away from our own sight, and to make
our escape from ourselves. But to what purpose is
it to flee from ourselves, if we cannot possibly avoid
either the sight or justice of God?

" 19. The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive
that thou art a prophet?"

This woman perceives at last, and confesses her
sins. How powerful and full of mercy is this ray
of grace, which at one and the same time opens our

k3

226 ST. JOHN.

eyes, that we behold our own wickedness and the
holiness of God, draws from us an acknowledgment
of our own slavery, and causes us to know our de-
liverer ! Lord, thou art indeed a prophet, and more
than a prophet, since thou dost not only discover the
heart, but dost likewise work and operate therein.

" 20. Our fathers worshipped in this mountain ;
and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men
ought to worship."

In order to repent and think effectually of salva-
tion, a person must, in the first place, be assured of
the true church, out of the pale of which, neither
the grace of repentance, nor the spirit of prayer, nor
the true worship of God, nor salvation, is to be
found. The prejudice of birth and education in the
greatest part of sectaries, is the cause of their ad-
herence to their false way of worship. They have
nothing to say in vindication of it, any more than
this Samaritan woman, but only that it is the reli-
gion of their fathers. But it is necessary to face
both the true and the false religion up to their very
original.

" 21. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me,
the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this moun-
tain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father."

It is the advantage of the Christian religion, to
be able, by the oblation of the external representa-
tive sacrifice, to worship God in every place.

" 22. Ye worship ye know not what: we know
what we worship : for salvation is of the Jews."

The sinner knows not what God he worships, be-
cause he worships what he loves, and he loves what-
ever flatters his passions — to-day one thing, to-mor-

CHAPTER IV. 227

row another. The true knowledge of God is not
mixed with errors, nor the true worship with super-
stitions, authorized by the body of the pastors, or
adopted by the whole church. Where Jesus, Christ
is represented in sacrifice as the victim and salvation
of the world, there is the true church, the true
knowledge of God, and the true worship.

" 23. But the hour cometh, and now is, when
the true worshippers shall worship the Father in
spirit and in truth : for the Father seeketh such to
worship him."

The true church is the church of the true wor-
shippers : the true worshippers are those who worship
God, 1. By sacrifice. 2. By an external sacrifice.
3. By a sacrifice which is the representative body and
blood of Christ. 4. By a sacrifice which is offered
to God as the Father, the almighty principle of every
created and uncreated being, of all divine and human
life, and of all natural and supernatural good. 5. In
the spirit of love, which is the spirit of children and
of true Christians. And, 6. In the truth and purity
of the faith. — Where, O my God, wilt thou find
these worshippers which thou seekest, unless thou
thyself form them by thy grace? Blessed be thou,
for having caused us to be born in the times of the
spirit and the truth ! Do not suffer us to bring
along with us to the Christian sacrifice, a Jewish or
Samaritan disposition.

" 24. God is a Spirit : and they that worship
him must worship him in spirit and in truth."

There are three sorts of sacrifices, suited to the
three different states of the church and of religion.
The first, "external and corporeal, for the Jewish

228 ST. JOHN.

church, which was merely typical and prophetic.
The second, both internal and external, corporeal and
spiritual, for the Christian church on earth. The
third, purely internal and spiritual, for the church of
the elect in heaven. The first and second, as far
as they are external and corporeal, are only prepara-
tory, and instituted merely on the account of sin,
and for the transitory state of the church ; or only
to prefigure the spiritual sacrifice, as the former; or
to be subservient thereto, as the latter. The se-
cond, as far as it is spiritual, together with the third,
is the sacrifice which is most agreeable to the nature
of God, vvho is a pure Spirit. A spirit and heart
sacrificed and consecrated to God by adoration and
a sincere humiliation before his majesty, a submission
and absolute dependence on his will, a lively acknow-
ledgment of his goodness and benefits, and a zeal and
ardent love for his glory, — this is the sacrifice, in
some measure, worthy of that eternal and infinitely
perfect Spirit, and of that supremely holy and un-
changeable will, which is God himself. It is by
this internal sacrifice that that of Jesus Christ him-
self is a sacrifice in spirit and in truth, and accep-
table to God. Without this sacrifice of the mind
and heart by charity, the external sacrifice, which
ought to be the sign, effect, and representation of
the other, is only an empty sign, a deceitful repre-
sentation, and a Jewish sacrifice.

" 25. The woman saith unto him, I know that
Messias cometh, which is called Christ : when he is
come, he will tell us all things."

Jesus then came at a time when the expectation
of the Messias was so common among the Jews, that

CHAPTER IV. 229

even a poor Samaritan woman, without the assistance
of the prophets, whom her sect did not receive, does
not stick to declare that he was upon the very point
of appearing in the world. She will condemn the
Jews, and all incredulous persons, who have seen in
him the works and marks of the Messias. Yes,
Lord, it is really thou from whom we are to learn all
things. It is to thee that I ought to have recourse
in all my doubts, and it is from thee that I must re-
ceive sufficient light to understand the Scriptures.

" 26. Jesus saith unto her, I that speak unto
thee am he."

How great comfort and consolation is it in our
doubts and miseries, to know that we have Jesus
Christ for our Saviour and Master ! He confounds
the vanity of proud and conceited doctors or teachers,
by discovering himself to this poor woman, though
involved in error, schism, and immorality, rather
than to the Pharisees, persons of great learning,
and an austere life. It is a great mistake to ima-
gine, that the knowledge of the mysteries of reli-
gion ought not to be imparted to persons of her
sex by the reading of the sacred books, considering
this instance of the great confidence Christ reposed
in this woman by his manifestation of himself unto
her. The abuse of the Scriptures, and the rise of
heresies, did not proceed from the simplicity of wo-
men, but from the conceited learning of men. The
more religion and piety any persons have, the more
right have they to feed on the word of God, and on
his truths. .

230 ST. JOHN.

Sect. II. — The Will of God the Food of the Soul.
The Prophets sowed, the Apostles reap. The
Faith cfthe Samaritans.

" 27. f And upon this came his disciples, and
marvelled that he talked with the woman : yet no
man said, Whatseekest thou? or, Why talkest thou
with her ?"

Christ conversed but very little with women, since
his disciples marvel at his doing it : this affords an
example of great weight for the clergy. We must
not immediately censure good men, though they
seem to us to do something contrary to decency. We
run no risk at all in suspending our judgment, and
waiting until some farther discovery may be made;
but we hazard a great deal, when we expose our-
selves to the violation of justice and charity by a rash
and precipitate judgment.

" 28. The woman then left her water-pot, and
went her way into the city, and saith to the men,
29. Come, see a man which told me all things that
ever I did: is not this the Christ? 30. Then they
went out of the city, and came unto him."

Wonderful effect this of one word of our blessed
Saviour upon the heart of a woman, who becomes the
apostle of her country ! He must needs have spoken
to other ears than those of the body; since he has a
greater influence on her heart than she has herself,
insomuch that she forgets every thing through her
great haste to carry tidings of him to her country-
men. Let us learn of her, that, in order to give
ourselves up to God, it is necessary we should forget
temporal things, that we should withdraw from our

CHAPTER IV. 231

ordinary employments for some time, that we should
be full of acknowledgment for the grace we have re-
ceived, that we should seriously meditate upon Christ,
and, by zealous discourses, bring those to him who
either do not know him or offend him, whenever we
have an opportunity of doing it.

"31. H In the mean while his disciples prayed
him, saying. Master, eat. 32. But he said unto
them, 1 have meat to eat that ye know not of."

Christ cannot lose sight of this soul whom he has
just gained over to his Father; he follows her in mind
and heart ; he acts in hers ; he is taken up with re-
flecting upon the zeal which carries her back to the
city; he attends upon her tongue to bless the word
of eternal life which she delivers to them ; and he
seeks, among that people, those whom his Father has
given him, that he may draw them to him; he offers
them up to him, prays to him for them, and works in
their hearts, to render them tractable and obedient
to the voice of this woman. This is the food of him
who is himself our bread and sustenance. He
teaches the apostles and ministers of the gospel, that
they must not easily be induced to give over any
work which they have begun, on the account either
of bodily wants or temporal concerns. From this
indifference of Christ in respect of food, after his
having walked till noon, it is easy to infer from
whence this woman received the forgetfulness of her
bodily thirst. This forgetfulness is a participation
of that of Jesus Christ.

" 33. Therefore said the disciples one to another,
Hath any man brought him ought to eat?"

Men, as yet carnal, find it difficult to conceive

232 ST. JOHN.

how much strength a zeal for the glory of God gives
even to the body. The work of God supports the
workman, and an evangelical labourer does not live
by bread alone, but by the same word of God which
proceeds out of his mouth for the nourishment and
support of others. God has in store for his ser-
vants such meat and delicious food as the mind of
man knows not of.

"34. Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do
the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work."

A pastor ought to have nothing at heart but the
work of God, and the salvation of souls. This
ought to be his delight, his meat, and his life.
There is nothing greater in the world than this
apostolical employment; yet we must not love the
dignity and eminency thereof, but the doing the will
of God. We ought to apply our minds thereto,
not because it pleases us, but because it pleases God ;
and to esteem the work, not on the account of the
part we have in it, but because it is God's, and for
his sake. Though a man labour therein till he has
quite spent himself, yet it is still more the work of
God than of man, since it is his Spirit which speaks
by the preacher's mouth; and which produces faith
in the heart of the auditor. Whilst we are carry-
ing on the work of God in others, let us take care
that the devil do not carry on his work in us by
means of vanity. In this employment, our humility
must be equal to our zeal. We have reason to
tremble under the weight of these three words — the
will, the mission, and the work of God.

" 35. Say not ye, There are yet four months,
and then cometh harvest? Behold, I say unto you,

CHAPTER IV. 233

Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields ; for they
are white already to harvest."

The multitude of the nations whom God calls to
the faith, and the vast number of sinners who are
to be brought to repentance, are a harvest always
ready for the evangelical labourers. It belongs to
them to labour at all times, and to God to give his
blessing to their labours, when and as he pleases.
Let us often lift up our eyes, and awaken our zeal,
either to beseech him to send forth labourers among
so many sinners, among so many people who know
him not, or to go among them ourselves, if he vouch-
safe to call us forth.

" 36. And he that reapeth receiveth wages, and
gathereth fruit unto life eternal; that both he that
soweth and he that reapeth may rejoice together."

Observe here three fruits, which ought to serve
as motives to encourage an evangelical workman in
his labour. The first is, salvation and an eternal re-
ward for himself. This is fully sufficient to oblige
us to expect no other: but we must not hope to
have it till after the harvest. The second is, the
salvation of souls converted. And the third is, the
perfection of the body of the elect, and the consum-
mation of the saints in God, by eternal joy and
glory, in which the full harvest does consist. If to
have contributed to the salvation of one soul be a
cause of joy and comfort, what will it be for a man
to see heaven, as it were, peopled by his labours !
The salvation of an evangelical minister frequently
depends upon that of other men : in labouring for
them he labours for himself.

" 37. And herein is that saying true, One sow-

234 ST. JOHN.

eth, and another reapeth. 38. I sent you to reap
that whereon ye bestowed no labour: other men la-
boured, and ye are entered into their labours."

It is no small comfort to those who labour much
in the church, and see no fruits thereof, to be assured
that they shall lose no part of their reward. It often
happens, that the fruit does not appear till a long
time after the death of the labourers : but all are
equal in the sight of God, both they who sow and
they who reap, when their charity is equal. It is a
motive to humility for these ecclesiastical workmen,
to consider that the plentifulness of their crop is per-
haps the fruit and recompense of the piety of their
predecessors. A second guide or spiritual director
pleases himself with seeing the progress made by a
soul under his care ; whereas it is perhaps the effect
of the prayers, labours, and patience of another per-
son.

" 39. % And many of the Samaritans of that city
believed on him for the saying of the woman, which
testified, He told me all that ever I did."

God frequently converts a soul in order to make
it instrumental in converting others. By making
use of the ministry of a poor woman for the conver-
sion of these people, who were at so great a distance
from the truth, he shows plainly, that all instruments
are alike to him to whom none is necessary, and who
of himself turns the heart of man as he pleases.
We must not disdain to receive from a woman that
instruction of which we stand in need. God is
pleased sometimes to humble learned men, by giving
them a farther insight into their duty by the meaus
of pious ladies, on whom he has conferred a great

CHAPTER IV. 235

degree of light and knowledge, to reward their charity,
fidelity, and zeal for his glory.

" 40. So when the Samaritans were come unto
him, they besought him that he would tarry with
them : and he abode there two days."

Christ finds more openness of heart and more
teachable dispositions among the Samaritans than
among the Jews; and yet he forbids his disciples to
preach the truth to them. O the depth of the judg-
ments of God ! Christ here teaches us to despise
none, to instruct all without distinction, and not to
judge what fruit the divine word will produce by the
present disposition of sinners. God alone knows
those who are his, and on whom he intends to show
the great instances of his mercy.

" 41. And many more believed because of his
own word ;"

The word of Christ in his own mouth, is more
powerful and efficacious than in that of another. In
like manner, greater blessing attends the reading
divine truths in the gospel itself, than when we read
the very same truths in other books : to do the former,
is to receive them, as it were, immediately from the
mouth of wisdom itself. As a lively and reverential
faith supplies Christ's corporeal presence in us ; so
will he, by the power of his grace, and the abundance
of his blessings, supply us with the beneficial and
saving effects of that presence.

" 42. And said unto the woman, Now we believe,
not because of thy saying ; for we have heard him
ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ,
the Saviour of the world."

How much light and knowledge does faith infuse,

236 ST. JOHN.

in a little time, into those hearts which God vouch-
safes to open to his word ! Had these men rejected
this word, when it was first delivered to them by this
woman, they would then have never heard it from
the mouth of Christ himself. Nothing is to be
slighted, when our salvation is concerned : one single
step at first, is frequently attended with very great
consequences. Happy this people, in having been
the first-fruits of the faith among the Samaritans;
in having learned, in so short a time, the need which
the whole world had of a Saviour, and consequently
the corruption of nature, and the necessity of grace
to repair and restore it; in having been the first who
owned, reverenced, and proclaimed on earth that
aimable quality and name of Saviour, which the angel
had proclaimed from heaven to the Jews ; and in
having been the only persons who, before the apostles,
published this truth, that Jesus is the Saviour of
the whole world ! Who can tell, but that this was
a reward for their having invited, received, and kept
Jesus Christ among them ; and was perhaps con-
ferred as a blessing upon that hospitality which they
had shown towards him, without having any regard
either to the aversion of the Samaritans, or to the
hatred of the Jews ?

Sect. III. — The Ruler's Son healed.

" 43. % Now, after two days he departed thence,
and went into Galilee :"

What ! so short a stay in a place where he met
with nothing but kind reception and obedience, and
where he saw so much fruit of his labours ! The
reason is, because the conduct of a minister of the

CHAPTER IV. 237

gospel is not to be regulated by such considerations,
but by God's appointment. To do tbe work en-
joined is not enough; we must examine whether we
do it according to his will and the order of his mis-
sion. It is an instance of self-denial, which is very
uncommon and extraordinary, to leave those who
respect and applaud us, that we may go to preach
among others from whom we have reason to expect
a quite different treatment.

" 44. For Jesus himself testified, that a prophet
hath no honour in his own country."

It is seldom known that a man is very serviceable
to his friends and acquaintance in the business of
salvation, and yet inclination always leads us that
way. When we decline going among them for fear
of being despised, it is pride: but when we do it,
because we would not have the word of God exposed
to contempt, it is prudence and discretion. In the
meantime we must take care not to be mistaken in
our motives. The safest way is, to keep to the ad-
vice and example of Jesus Christ in relation to this
matter.

" 45. Then, when he was come into Galilee, the
Galileans received him, having seen all the things
that he did at Jerusalem at the feast : for they also
went unto the feast."

To believe without miracles, is the excellency of
the faith of the Samaritans ; to believe on the account
of miracles, is at least to do more than the generality
of the Jews, and to yield to the authority of God, as
the Galileans did. These miracles are for us, as
well as for those who saw them, since the gospel
renders them present to us. Let them serve there-

238 ST. JOHN.

fore to increase our faith and confidence in Christ,
especially since they have been confirmed by the
grand miracle of his resurrection, and by so many
others which have followed it. The Galileans would
perhaps have rejected Christ and his word, if they had
not seen his miracles : and they would not have seen
them, if they had not gone unto the feast. Of so
great advantage is it faithfully to perform the duties
of religion. So great is the blessing which attends
the constant appearance at our parish-church, on days
set apart for the honour of God.

" 46. So Jesus came again into Cana of Galilee,
where he made the water wine. And there was a
certain nobleman, whose son was sick at Capernaum.,,

Christ does not come to this place to seek any
new applause on the account of his miracle, but to
reap the fruit of it in the confidence of this ruler, and
to strengthen the faith of these people by showing
them another. An evangelical labourer, after the
example of Christ, must be careful to keep up and
confirm the good which he has done among souls by
the ministry of the word.

" 47. When he heard that Jesus was come out of
Judea into Galilee, he went unto him, and besought
him that he would come down and heal his son ; for
lie was at the point of death. "

Afflictions are useful, since they oblige us to have
recourse to God. We should very often be ex-
tremely fond of a son, a friend, or an estate, and place
our whole happiness therein, if the danger of being
deprived of every one of them, did not put us in
mind that they are all but perishing things, and that
we must seek our happiness in something which cannot

CHAPTER IV. 239

be taken away from us. Neither the fondness of this
father towards his son, nor his too great forwardness
in desiring a miracle to secure his enjoyment of him,
nor his false notion of the omnipotence of God, nor
the imperfection of his faith, gives any disgust to
Christ. Thus God bears with our prayers, how
imperfect soever they be.

" 48. Then said Jesus unto him, Except ye see
signs and wonders, ye will not believe."

Would to God there were not abundance of per-
sons in the world, who, like this nobleman, do not
believe miracles, because they do not see them ! It
is great ingratitude not to think ourselves concerned
in those signs and wonders which God has wrought
at distant times or remote places, to establish the faith
of the church, which every where, and in all ages,
is one and the same. It is a shame and reproach to
the understanding of man, that it is seldom averse to
the belief of strange and extraordinary things, unless
it be when God is the author of them. It is not
enough just to believe them, we must preserve the
remembrance of them, we must not suffer the im-
pression they have made upon our mind to be lost,
but we must draw from them their just consequences,
and reap that fruit which they ought to produce.

" 49. The nobleman saith unto him, Sir, come
down ere my child die."

The power of Jesus Christ is not confined either
to time or place. Men are very far from desiring
miracles with as much earnestness to secure their
faith and salvation, as to secure to themselves the
enjoyment of some temporal advantage, which may
possibly extinguish their faith, and rob them of sal-

240 ST. JOHN.

vation. The presence of Christ is a very great and
desirable blessing : but to confine his power and
goodness to his presence, is a piece of infidelity which
seems very common even in the present age. The
eagerness and confusion of our desires, which are too
natural and carnal, often hinder us from understand-
ing that which God speaks to us. Christ intends
to cure this father of his want of faith, in order to
make him worthy to receive the cure of his son ; but
he is hitherto wholly taken up with the thoughts of
that which he is afraid of losing. My God, how
many fathers are there in the world who nearly re-
semble him !

" 50. Jesus saith unto him, Go thy way ; thy
son liveth. And the man believed the word that
Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way."

Let us observe here the double miracle, wrought
by the word alone of Christ ; the one on the distant
body of the son, the other on the invisible heart of
the father, who is himself cured of his incredulity by
believing the cure which he did not see. We ad-
mire the first, but we take scarce any notice at all of
the second, which is yet more worthy of God, af-
fords a greater proof of the divinity of Christ, belongs
more peculiarly to his mission, and is less communi-
cable to prophets and other holy men. It is of this
miracle, O Lord, that I stand in need ; it is this
which I beg of thee, as being the Saviour of my soul,
and the sovereign Physician for all the diseases of
my heart.

" 51. And as he was now going down, his servants
met him, and told him, saying, Thy son liveth. 52.
Then inquired he of them the hour when he began

CHAPTER IV. 241

to amend. And they said unto him, Yesterday at
the seventh hour the fever left him;"

The efficaciousness of the word of Christ, even
absent, taught his disciples thus early, that his de-
parture into heaven ought not in the least to diminish
their trust and confidence in his assistance. His
word performs that which it signifies, because it is
the sign of his will, and his will is his omnipotence
itself. The fevers which affect the body are gene-
rally healthful to the soul ; and therefore we ought
to be more earnest in praying for a good use of them
than for their cure, and much less should we desire
a miracle to this purpose. Those fevers only which
affect the soul are obstacles to salvation ; and nothing
must be spared to obtain their cure. Say to me, O
Jesus, after an effectual manner, Thy soul is healed.
Say to the church, who pours out her sighs before
thee in behalf of so many weak and diseased children,
" Thy son liveth."

" 53. So the father knew that it was at the same
hour in the which Jesus said unto him, Thy son
liveth : and himself believed, and his whole house."

It is not sufficient that we ourselves are con-
vinced of the miracles which God has wrought for
us; we must likewise assert the truth of them to
others, that God may be glorified thereby, and that
the church may reap that fruit from them which he
designed she should. This family had not been
converted, if this father had contented himself with
only believing the miracle, and returning thanks to
God in the private recesses of his heart. The pub-
lication of the divine graces and favours is an engage-
ment to gratitude and acknowledgment; and, con-

Vol. III. L 57

212 ST. JOHN.

sidering our own unfaithfulness, we cannot lay our-
selves under too many engagements to perform any
dutv. This nobleman is an example of a master of
a family, intent on making all the favours and mercies
which God has showed him instrumental to the spiri-
tual advantage thereof. The piety of a father or of
a superior, is a grace belonging to the head, which
should be diffused throughout all the members: and
when God intends to save a family or society, the seed
of this grace is generally sown in the head thereof.

" 54. This is again the second miracle that Jesus
did, when he was come out of Judea into Galilee."

The exactness of the evangelist is serviceable to
the faith, and tends to confirm the truth of the
miracles of Jesus Christ. The first wrought at
Cana, established the faith of the heads of the church :
the second gained a whole family thereto. Both
were designed to instruct the people of Nazareth at a
distance, and to show them plainly who he was, with-
out excitinn- either their envy or contempt by his
presence.

CHAPTER V.

Sect. I. — The Pool. The Man who was diseased
thirty- eight Years.

" 1. After this there was a feast of the Jews;
and Jesus went up to Jerusalem."

We find our blessed Saviour, at all times and on
all occasions, exact in observing the laws and usages
of religion, in celebrating the festivals, in edifying his
neighbour by a constant performance of the duties of

CHAPTER V. 243

piety, and in seeking all opportunities to prove his
mission, to instruct the people, and to comfort the
elect, by showing them the Saviour so much desired
and expected.

" 2. Now there is at Jerusalem, by the sheep-
market, a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue
Bethesda, having five porches. 3. In these lay a great
multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered,
waiting for the moving of the water."

The pool of grace, situate near the gate of vic-
tims, was an emblem of the church, wherein the
water of baptism and that of the tears of repentance
cure all sort of spiritual diseases, by virtue of the
blood of the true victim, with which they are, as it
were, tinged and dyed. A great number of diseases
and diseased persons are necessary to represent the
state and condition to which man is reduced by sin :
so miserable is he, and full of infirmity from his very
birth. He is nothing but weakness, corruption, and
blindness, utterly unable to do the least good, and in
him all grace and virtue are exhausted and withered
away. This, O my Saviour, is what I should have
been eternally in thy sight, if, after having been so
long expected, thou hadst not come down among us
by thy incarnation. How great is the debt which I
owe thee, for having moved this water in my behalf,
which has made me whole ! Finish, Lord, what
thou hast begun.

" 4. For an angel went down at a certain season
into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever
then first, after the troubling of the water, stepped
in, was made whole of whatsoever disease he had."

We must wait for the moments of grace and

l 2

244 ST. JOHN.

mercy, which God has reserved to his sovereign
power for the conversion of souls, not passing our
time in idleness, but in labour, humility, and vigi-
lance. The grace of repentance is a thing very rare :
a true penitent, who in every respect deserves that
name, is almost as difficult to be found as a phoenix.
To wait for the angel's coming down, either by the
pool's side or in one of the porches, is to desire, im-
plore, and wait for the spirit of repentance, in order
to perform it, every one in his proper state. Who-
ever fully understands the value of this grace, should
make great haste, should use violence towards him-
self, and not lose a moment in casting himself into
this healing pool. It is a holy ambition in a person
to be desirous of stepping first into it, as looking upon
himself to be the first, or chiefest of sinners. The
trouble which we meet with in repentance is a trouble
of grace, which the dread of the divine judgments
raises in our minds, to no other end but to procure
us a substantial peace and an everlasting calm. O
peace of a good conscience ! O perfect cure ! what
ought we not to do in order to obtain and enjoy
thee !

" 5. And a certain man was there, which had an
infirmity thirty and eight years."

God often makes choice of the greatest sinners, to
show forth in them the greatness of his mercy, and
the power of his grace. The more destitute we are
of human aid and assistance, the more right have we
to hope for that of God. Though the disease of
our soul be inveterate and incurable, yet it is not so
in respect of the almighty Physician. This is a very
great comfort even for the greatest sinners. Pastors

CHAPTER V. 245

ouflfht to apply themselves with the greatest care to
those who have the greatest need : to these the pre-
ference is due.

" 6. When Jesus saw him lie, and knew that he
had been now a long time in that case, he saith unto
him, Wilt thou be made whole?"

The look which Christ casts upon this paralytic,
is an emblem of that internal look of mercy which he
casts upon a sinner, while he lies grovelling on the
earth through the corruption of his heart, and de-
pressed under the weight of his sins. In vain would
the sinner endeavour to conceal from him the wounds
and ulcers of his heart : Christ knows them better
than he himself does. When the body is out of
order, the will has no need of a physician to dispose it
to desire health, because it is not that which is in-
disposed, unless it be perhaps in desiring health either
too eagerly, or to a bad purpose. But in the disease
of the soul, it is the will itself which is indisposed ;
and its greatest illness is, that it loves its disease,
and hates and avoids health. We cannot therefore
be made whole, and cured of our sins, unless we be
willing : but it is God who produces in us both the
will and the effect ; he causes us to desire that which
he designs to give.

W 7. The impotent man answered him, Sir, I
have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me
into the pool : but while I am coming, another step-
peth down before me."

It is the first beginning of a cure, for a man to
know the need he has of a good director of the con-
science, to guide him to the healing pool of repent-
ance, and to put him into it. The more uncommon

246 ST. JOHN.

such persons are, the more care must be taken in
choosing well. Before a sinner makes this choice,
he ought frequently to address himself to God after
this manner: — Lord, I have no man to whom 1 can
intrust my heart; who knows how to manage and
improve those motions of attrition by which it is
stirred and troubled; who will not flatter my con-
trary passions and inclinations, but has knowledge
and prudence, vigilance and application, strength and
resolution, sufficient to put me into the exercises of
a penitential life. — It is necessary to wait for such a
man, to delay our choice rather than to make a bad
one ; but above all, to implore the assistance of that
invisible man, without whom no other is able to do
any thing.

" 8. Jesus saith unto him, Rise, take up thy bed,
and walk."

Observe here three effects of the cure of the soul.
1. It forsakes its sin. 2. It lays aside the marks, aud
declines all the occasions thereof. 3. It performs the
contrary actions. — It is in this respect that a spiritual
director ought to show some courage and resolution,
and to make use of his authority, but to do it with
mildness, and the discreet methods of charity. Christ
causes the sinner to do that which he commands.
He gives the heart strength to rise from the earth,
arms to undertake works of mortification, and feet to
walk in the way of God's commandments and of peni-
tential exercises. A spiritual guide or director can-
not five these feet, these arms, or this strength : but
he ought to beg them for the person under his care,
and that with so much the greater earnestness and
perseverance, as the penitent is less able to do it, and
does it less himself.

CHAPTER V. 247

" 9. And immediately the man was made whole,
and took up his bed, and walked : and on the same
day was the sabbath."

It is a miracle which happens very seldom, for a
man to be delivered in an instant from his sins and
evil habits, and from the weakness which generally
attends them. God sometimes works this miracle
to manifest his power, and to inspire confidence into
sinners; but he most commonly lets them feel their
weakness, and struggle with their vicious habits, on
purpose to humble them by the remembrance of their
sins, to make them apprehensive of a relapse, and to
oblige them to be diffident of themselves, and to have
recourse to him by prayer. Tractableness and obe-
dience to the directions given, is a virtue very neces-
sary to a penitent who is in good hands. It gives
strength to the weak, settles them in a state ofVreat
peace and satisfaction, and draws down upon them
abundance of graces.

" 10. % The Jews therefore said unto him that
was cured, It is the sabbath-day; it is not lawful for
thee to carry thy bed."

The most discreet directors of the conscience al-
ways meet with persons who control and censure
their conduct, and who know how to cover their spi-
rit of malice, envy, and self-interest, with the specious
pretence of religion, and a feigned love of the divine
law. It is the property of Pharisees to decry the
pastors of the church, and to raise a distrust in the
mind of penitents by vain scruples and a false ten-
derness of conscience. All the notice we are to take
of such malicious persons is to despise them, to leave
them to themselves after Christ's example, and to
persevere in doing our duty.

218 ST. JOHN.

" 11. He answered them, He that made me whole,
the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and
walk."

True obedience consists in complying rather with
the author and the spirit of the law, than with the
letter. He who has a good director of his con-
science, has a good warrant for his conduct. A real
cure of a man's passions, received in following his
directions, is the best assurance he can have of the
approbation of God. Jt is a right way of reasoning
to argue thus : — This spiritual director has cured me
of my vanity, of my fondness for the world, of my
inclination to gaming, luxury, and sloth, and of my
other vicious habits : I ought therefore to rely upon
his conduct, and despise whatever is alleged against
him without proof, in order to render him suspected
to me. As it is by real cures that true physicians
are distinguished from quacks, so it is by the change
of the manners of penitents that good directors of the
conscience are known.

" 12. Then asked they him, What man is that
which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and walk?"

We are too often apt to make inquiries of this
nature, which proceed from envy, jealousy, and self-
interest, concerning a spiritual guide who is faithful
to his ministry, only that we may find out somewhat
for which we may decry him. " WThat man is that,"
who causes others to renounce ambition and pleasure,
and would have them walk so uprightly in the ways
of God ? His works speak for him : and those like-
wise of these impertinent inquirers show plainly what
they are.

" 13. And he that was healed wist not who it

CHAPTER V. 2i0

was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multi-
tude being in that place."

Christ, by conveying himself away, admonishes his
ministers not to expect applause after the doing some
remarkable action, but to hide and conceal themselves.
A disinterested director of the conscience studies only
how he may be serviceable to souls for the sake ot
God, and never thinks of making the least temporal
advantage to himself by the direction of them. Spi-
ritual guides and penitents should not know one an-
other any farther than in what relates to the cure of
the soul ; nor should directors of the conscience make
their relations too much known, or employ to their
advantage that interest which the nature of their
office necessarily gives them.

" 14. Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple,
and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole:
sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee."

Let us learn from these words, 1. That diseases
and afflictions are punishments of sin, and conse-
quently, that the best remedy we can apply to them
is repentance and conversion. 2. That these punish-
ments ought to serve as instructions; and that, after
the cure either of our bodies or our souls, we are
obliged to manifest a very great humility and a pro-
found gratitude towards God. 3. That relapses are
more dangerous, and more severely punished. 4.
That one of the chief cares of a spiritual guide or
director, who has laboured in the conversion of a soul,
and been blessed with success, is to remind it from
time to time of the great favour it has received, of
the sad condition out of which it has been recovered,
and to secure it against relapses. 5. That a spiritual

l3

250 ST. JOHN.

director ought not to lose sight of a soul which he has
converted ; but that he ought even to seek it out, to
improve the beginnings of its new life. And, 6. That
it is in the temple, and at the foot of the altar, that
a penitent soul ought to be found, in prayer, in per-
forming the duties of religion, in the presence of God,
and in recollection. It is there that it will find Jesus
Christ, and receive new graces and instructions.

" 15. The man departed, and told the Jews that
it was Jesus which had made him whole."

It requires abundance of prudence to speak of the
graces we have received, and of those by whose minis-
try we have received them. Men sometimes think
to ffain new admirers of the works and mercies of
God, and they only stir up envy, and kindle a perse-
cution against his servants.

" 16. And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus,
and sought to slay him, because he had done these
things on the sabbath-day."

Every thing conspires to make Christ suffer; and
even the gratitude and acknowledgments of those
who love him contribute thereto. It belongs to the
fidelity of a Christian, not to abstain from doing good,
and especially from works of charity, for fear either
of giving a seeming occasion of offence to others, or
of receiving ill treatment from them. Whenever
God visibly authorizes an action which appears con-
trary to his law, he himself interprets his own law,
or dispenses with it. A strange way this of judging
of the conduct of Christ, as well as of his ministers !
To fix only upon that which is blameable in appear-
ance, and to consider no part of that which God does
in justification of it. Blind wretches ! not to discern

CHAPTER V. 251

the works of God's omnipotence from the actions of
men; nor, among the latter, to distinguish those of
necessity and charity, which could not possibly be
prohibited, from common and ordinary actions, which
the law forbade on the Sabbath-day.

Sect. II. — Christ' 's Sermon to the Jews. The Son
does whatever the Father doeth, is Judge, and
raises the Dead.

" 17. % But Jesus answered them, My Father
worketh hitherto, and I work."

See here a most high and divine apology for the
pretended violation of the Sabbath. Let us here
admire how God makes the perverseness of the ene-
mies of the truth subservient to the manifestation of
the most sublime truths of religion, and how he in-
structs his elect, while in all appearance he speaks
only to his enemies. The first reason which Christ
here gives of his conduct on this occasion is, that
he is God, and that the Jewish Sabbath is not at all
obligatory with respect to him. That rest and com-
placency which he took in his works after the crea-
tion of the world, and which he intended should be
honoured by the rest of the Sabbath, does by no
means hinder either the eternal operations of his
divine understanding and adorable will, which termi-
nate in the generation of the Son, and the procession
of the Holy Ghost; nor the operation of his provi-
dence, which preserves, governs, and makes all crea-
tures act ; nor the operation of his Spirit, either as
to the miraculous effects produced on corporeal be-
ings, or the effects of grace in spiritual. The Son,
being God equally with the Father, does all things

252 ST. JOHN.

as well as he; they having eternally but one and the
same virtue, majesty, substance, power, will, opera-
tion, &c. The creatures, every one according to its
state and condition, ought, by a quiet and constant
labour, to honour that God who is continually work-
ing amidst his eternal rest. A soul which knows to
what end it was created, is incessantly aspiring after
that unity of action in heaven, which is to succeed
the variety and multiplicity of our actions here on
earth. Let us take great care, by a union of mind
and will with God in whatever we do, to prepare our-
selves for that unity which is promised us for all eter-
nity.

" 18. Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill
him, because he not only had broken the sabbath,
but said also that God was his Father, making him-
self equal with God."

Christ is the martyr of truth and charity, who
exposes himself to the danger of death, rather than
abandon the miserable, or not assert his divinity,
when the glory of his Father required it. Is this
the gratitude and acknowledgment which men owe
thee, O Saviour of the world ! for having vouchsafed
to manifest thyself unto them, and to reveal a truth
upon which their salvation entirely depends ? This
is the lot and portion of truth upon earth. Those
who preach the most saving truths, must expect to be
contradicted and opposed. This contradiction is in-
strumental to the sanctification of the preacher, the
glory of God, and the triumph of truth itself: but it
tends to the condemnation of the world, and is the
cause of the judgments of God.

" 19. ^| Then answered Jesus, and said unto them,

CHAPTER V. 253

Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do no-
thing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do :
for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the
Son likewise."

The second reason of the conduct of Christ in the
pretended violation of the Sabbath, and by which he
confounds the malice of the Jews, in revealing the
most sublime truths of Christianity, is, that he may
make known that he is not only God, but likewise
the Son of God, who receives from his Father, to-
gether with his divine essence, his whole knowledge,
will, designs, and power, as also a holy and adorable
necessity of doing by him what things soever he
doeth himself. O inability, almighty and infinitely
perfect, whereby God is unchangeably all that he is
eternally, without any possibility of being otherwise !
The Father cannot act any otherwise than of himself,
as being the beginning without beginning. The
Son cannot act of himself, since he receives from his
Father his essence, power, and will, by his eternal
origin and birth, yet without any imperfection or
dependence. To whom does it belong to adore thi3
mystery of the Word proceeding from the under-
standing of the Father, but to those for whose sake
he humbled himself in stooping to be born in and of
the flesh ? To do that which he seeth the Father
do, is to do it by a will and power flowing from the
Father by way of light and knowledge. Let us
adore these incomprehensible mysteries, and, like true
children of God, love to imitate them, in doing no-
thing merely of our own will, but with a dependence
upon God and Jesus Christ, as the principle and
pattern of all our actions.

254 ST. JOHN.

" 20. For the Father loveth the Son, and show-
eth him all things that himself doeth : and he will
show him greater works than these, that ye may
marvel."

The third reason of the conduct of Christ in the
pretended violation of the Sabbath, is because, that
as Son of God, incarnate, and the sole object of the
love and confidence of his Father, he observes only
his commands, being the person who executes all the
designs of his love towards his church, of which he
is the head. In this quality he has received of him
a full knowledge, and as it were a draught of all his
designs, which he is punctually to follow, in order
to accomplish them by his human nature, as by the
instrument of his divine, united to the divine nature
itself. How adorable are these two communications
made to the Son in his two different births; the one
eternal, by the natural and necessary fruitfulness of
the Father's understanding; the other temporal, by
the free and gratuitous kindness and mercy of his
will ! The miraculous cures performed by Christ,
are but an introduction to the wonders of his mission.
These are for us rather than for the Jews. Let us
admire, adore, thank, and praise God, for all the
great things he has done for us by his Son.

" 21. For as the Father raiseth up the dead,
and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth
whom he will."

The proof of these three reasons of Christ's con-
duct in the pretended violation of the Sabbath, namely,
because he is God, the Son of God equal to his Fa-
ther, and the general dispenser of his designs con-
cerning men, is drawn from his prerogatives and

CHAPTER V. 255

functions in these three qualities. For his first pre-
rogative and function is, to give life. The prophets
both healed sick persons and raised the dead, but
not one of them did either, to prove that he was the
Son of God, ascribing to himself a power of raising
the dead equal to that of the Father, or asserting
that he quickened whom he would, or foretelling
miracles a long time before they came to pass. Of
what nature soever the life be, it comes from thee,
O Jesus, as the author and principle of all life in
conjunction with thy Father, and as the first-fruits
of life, both in time and eternity. I adore thee
therefore, as restoring life to the dead even in the
days of thy mortal life. I give myself to thee as
restoring the life of grace to sinners from the highest
heavens. And I wait for thee as the fountain and
pattern of the eternal life of thy elect at thy second
coming.

" 22. For the Father judgeth no man, but hath
committed all judgment unto the Son :"

The second prerogative and function of Christ is,
to be the universal Judge of the quick and the dead.
To him belongs all judgment, visible and invisible,
particular and general, temporal and eternal, either
by withdrawing grace, or inflicting punishment. I
own and adore thee, O Jesus, as my judge, and as
the sovereign disposer of life and death. My lot is
in thy hands; for thou dispensest thy graces accord-
ing to the measure which thou hast settled, and
appointest punishments according to the degree and
demerit of the sins. Judge me, O Lord, not in thy
anger, but in thy mercy. Punish me in this world,
not in the other: not by withdrawing thy Holy

256 ST. JOHN.

Spirit from me, or casting me out of thy sight, but
rather by depriving me of the carnal satisfactions of
this life, and the fatal prosperity of this corrupt world.

" 23. That all men should honour the Son, ev.en
as they honour the Father. He that honoureth
not the Son, honoureth not the Father which hath
sent him."

The third prerogative of Jesus Christ is, to be
honoured with the same honour which is paid to his
Father; as being his only Son, appointed by him
heir of all things according to his human nature, and
Lord of all things according to his divine; as being
his envoy and ambassador, not barely representing
his adorable majesty, but possessing it indivisibly
with him ; and as being his living image, an honorary
image which does not by some particular features just
give a faint idea of his greatness, but which really
contains all his perfections, is the very brightness of
his glory, and the eternal and subsisting character of
his essence. Jt is the design of God to cause his
Son Jesus Christ to be honoured, to receive honour
himself only in and by him, and to own none for his
true worshippers but Christians who bear the name
of his Christ; and yet the generality of Christians
apply themselves less to him than to his servants.
Great God ! awaken, in this age, I beseech thee, a
spirit of devotion towards thy Son, and cause him to
be honoured in the church as he ought.

" 2<i. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that
heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me,
hath everlasting life, and shall not come into con-
demnation ; but is passed from death unto life."

The fourth prerogative and function of Christ is,

CHAPTER V. 257

to bring the word of his Father to men ; to make his
own word the seed of faith, and to cause it by faith
to become the necessary means of escaping the con-
demnation of Adam, of rising again to the life of
grace, and of enjoying that which is eternal. Ob-
serve here the chief points necessary to salvation :

1. To hear the word of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

2. To believe and put our trust in God. 3. To
believe the doctrine of the Trinity, a God who sends,
a God who is sent, and a God who is the Spirit and
love of both : one only God in three persons. 4.
To believe the incarnation of the Son sent by the
Father. 5. To believe the fall of Adam, his con-
demnation to the death of body and soul, and ori-
ginal sin, which renders his fall and condemnation
common to all his posterity. 6. To believe the ne-
cessity of a Redeemer in order to our passing from
death unto life. 7. To hope for everlasting life. —
Grant, O Jesus, that I may truly honour thee in
adhering steadfastly to thy word with a lively faith,
in feeding upon it in hope of the blessed life hereafter,
and in practising it by charity.

" 25. Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is
coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the
voice of the Son of God ; and they that hear shall
live."

The 8th point necessary to salvation is, to believe
the resurrection of the body, and the immortality of
the soul. Christ makes his voice to be heard equally
by the dead, and by the most hardened sinners, and
restores to the latter the life of the soul, and to the
former that of the body. O Jesus, who art the
word of life, the life itself made manifest to men,

258 ST. JOHN.

life eternal which was in the Father as the first pro-
duction of intellectual life in God himself, and as the
principle of the living, subsisting, and consubstautial
love of the divine Persons : to thee only it appertains
to be the life of the children of God, and the source
of all life in men, whether spiritual or corporeal, na-
tural or supernatural, mortal or immortal, of grace or
of glory: and such thou art by the ministry of thy
word, to honour thyself as the eternal life and word,
and to teach us to honour thee as such, and to depend
upon thee in all the uses and effects of life and of
the word, which thou hast been pleased to communi-
cate to us out of thy abundant fulness.

" 26. For as the Father hath life in himself, so
hath he given to the Son to have life in himself;
27. And hath given him authority to execute judg-
ment also, because he is the Son of man."

The authority of Jesus Christ as head of the
church, and envoy of his Father, is comprised in these
two qualities of Saviour and Judge. As Saviour,
he delivers from death and bestows life; and he be-
stows it, as being essential life, and the fountain of
all life in quality of Son of God. As Judge, he
punishes and condemns to death, and will alone ex-
ercise this power of judging the world in a plain
and sensible manner; because he alone rendered
himself visible by the incarnation, and he alone is
Son of God and Son of man together. I adore thee,
O Jesus, who judgest both the quick and the dead
invisibly with thy Father, as Son of God; and who
wilt judge them visibly in thy Father's name, as Son
of man.

" 28. Marvel not at this : for the hour is coming,

CHAPTER V. 259

in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his
voice,"

No, Lord, my faith scruples not in the least to
believe, that death heard thy voice from the bed of
Jairus' daughter, from the coffin of the widow's son,
and from the grave of Lazarus ; because 1 believe
likewise, without the least scruple, that dust and
ashes will hear it from the centre of the earth, and
from all parts of the world; and that death will obey
thee eve/y where and for ever. Let my heart, O
Jesus, not be deaf to thy voice, when thou vouch-
safest to speak to it, in order to destroy in it some
part of the death of sin ! Happy is that person
whom Christ has caused to hear the voice of his grace
from the very lowest abyss of his sin, and who has
been obedient to his call ! What gratitude and ac-
knowledgment is due to him for so great a benefit !

" 29. And shall come forth ; they that have done
good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that
have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation."

According to these words of Christ, there is no
medium betwixt good and bad actions, with respect
to salvation ; betwixt the resurrection of life, and the
resurrection of damnation. There are but two sorts .
of love, from which all our desires and actions pro-
ceed : The love of God, which does every thing for
his sake, and which is rewarded by him; and the
love of ourselves and of the world, which does not
ultimately refer that to God which ought to be re-
ferred to him, and which for this very reason becomes
bad. Let us think seriously upon this matter : we
shall come forth out of our graves such as we enter
in, destined either to a blessed and eternal life for

260 ST. JOHN.

our good works, or to eternal death for our sins.
Who would not courageously apply himself to good
works, which will make so prodigious a difference
and distinction hetwixt men ?

" 30. J can of mine own self do nothing : as I
hear, I judge: and my judgment is just ; because I
seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father
which hath sent me."

The sovereign power is given to Jesus Christ, as
head of the church, to form it in succeeding ages by
the infusion of his Spirit and life, and to judge man-
kind at the end of the world, in raising them either
to life or condemnation. But this sovereign power
of this divine Head of the church, depends originally
upon the knowledge and will of the Word, which
are those of the Father. Christ, as man, has no
thoughts, designs, desires, or inclinations of himself;
and he neither quickens nor judges any one by a
choice which is arbitrary, and independent on the
inspiration, conduct, and direction of the Word to
whom he is united. The injustice of our judgments
and actions, proceeds either from the darkness of our
understanding, or from the corruption of our will.
Every thing is just in Christ, because every thing in
him is conformable to the truth and the will of his
Father. Render me, O divine Word, attentive to
that which thou speakest to me, and so faithful as to
desire nothing but what is agreeable to thy will.
Hinder by thy grace, I beseech thee, any secret de-
sign of doing always my own will, from darkening
my judgment in relation to the things of God and
eternal salvation.

CHAPTER V. 261

Sect. III. — Christ does not bear witness of himself,
John a burning and a shining light.

" 31. f If I bear witness of myself, my witness
is not true."

How false then is the testimony or witness which
the proud person bears to himself in his own heart,
without having the testimony of his works, and having
against himself that of his own infidelities and mise-
ries ? Those reformers who have no other testimony
of their mission than that which they give to them-
selves, do they deserve to be so much as heard?
No witness whatever ought to be more suspected by
us, and is more justly liable to exception than our-
selves, when we are the only persons who speak to
our own advantage. We imagine we see in ourselves
the good which we have not: and we do not see the
evil which we really have.

" 32. There is another that beareth witness of
me ; and I know that the witness which he witnesseth
of me is true. 33. Ye sent unto John, and he bear
witness unto the truth."

John is the first witness of Jesus Christ, by a
wonderful dispensation of the providence of the Fa-
ther in relation to his Son, causing another to bear
witness of him, before he should bear witness of
himself. Humility does not allow us to be the first
in speaking in our own behalf, without great neces-
sity. It is one mark of a divine mission, for a per-
son, before his appearing in the world, to have some
declaration from God concerning him : a mark which
no authors of heresy ever had. There are several
circumstances in John which render his testimony

262 ST. JOHN.

unexceptionable: — 1. He is consulted by tbe very-
enemies of Christ, as a holy and extraordinary person.
2. He is perfectly free from all self-interest, having
declined making the least advantage by his own re-
putation. 3. He is sincere, undaunted, and so averse
to all kind of flattery, that he reproves Herod at the
hazard of his liberty and life. 4. He was so far
from having been solicited or courted by Christ, that
he had not yet so much as seen him.

" 34. But I receive not testimony from man: but
these things I say, that ye might be saved."

We ought never to omit any thing which may
be instrumental to the salvation of souls; yet we
must avoid ostentation in whatever we do. It is
the part of prudence, as well as humility, not to be
forward in endeavouring to engage others in favour-
able discourses concerning us: it belongs to God to
open their mouths in our commendation. A pastor
should not be jealous of his own reputation, but only
so far as it concerns the salvation of his flock, and
the honour of the church : to promote these, is the
sole end to which he ought to make the esteem of
men subservient.

" 35. He was a burning and a shining light; and
ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light."

Only to shine, is but vanity; to burn without
sinning, is not sufficient. To burn with the love of
God, and to enlighten our neighbour by instruction
and good example, this is the perfection of the pas-
toral charity, and the completion of the ministry.
Woe to those extinguished lamps, in which neither
the light of truth, nor the heat of charity, can be
found ! WToe to those people, and souls, who find

CHAPTER V. 263

both these qualities in their pastors, only to their
own condemnation, like the Jews ! When a light
rises in the church, it darts forth at first a lustre, at
which the world itself rejoices; but this lasts not
long. The world always loves its own darkness
better than light, and endeavours to extinguish, in
the end, the light which opposes its darkness. We
have great reason to fear, lest we should be of the
number of those souls, who rejoice at the brightness
of the light, or reputation, of a preacher or spiritual
director, and perform not that which he requires of
them in order to their salvation.

" 36. 51 But I have greater witness than that of
John: for the works which the Father hath given
me to finish, the same works that 1 do, bear witness
of me, that the Father hath sent me."

The miraculous works of Christ, are the second
witness which bear testimony of him. The testi-
mony of men, when not supported by that of works,
is of little or no account. The opinions of men
change, and ours change concerning them, as those
of the Jews did in respect of John; but works con-
tinue always the same. Let us never grow weary
of reminding our brethren, who are wandered out of
the way, of what God is never weary of reminding
us in his word, namely, that their apostles were only
seducers, having had neither forerunners to introduce
them, nor miraculous works to authorize them, nor
voice of God to approve them, nor scripture to fore-
tell and point them out.

"37. And the Father himself, which hath sent
me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither
heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.

264 ST. JOHN.

38. And ye have not his word abiding in you : for
whom he hath sent, him ye believe not."

God the Father is the third witness, who bears
testimony of Jesus Christ. He speaks to men by
his incarnate Word. He who will not own and re-
ceive the Son, and the word of salvation which he
delivers, shall never know God, whom we cannot
possibly either hear with the ears, or see with the
eyes of the body, but only with the ears and eyes of
faith in his word. If we have the word of God in
our mind and mouth alone, and have it not abiding
in our heart, we have it only after a Jewish manner,
and to our own condemnation.

Sect. IV. — The Scriptures. The love of Honour
hinders Faith. Moses condemns the Jews.

H 39. 51 Search the scriptures; for in them ye
think ye have eternal life: and they are they which
testify of me."

All the Scriptures, which are full of Jesus Christ,
are a fourth witness in his favour. They are mines
of gold: we must search, and as it were dig very
deep in them, by means of study, prayer, and medi-
tation, in order to find Jesus Christ. The ill use
which these people made of the Scriptures, hinders
not our blessed Lord from encouraging and pressing
them to read them all with care. They do indeed
contain eternal life — not for those who, like the
Jews, mind only the letter, are intent on carnal pro-
mises, and put their whole confidence in them, know-
ing nothing of their spirit and design — but for those
who, by a deep search, discover Christ in them, and
place all their hopes of salvation in him alone.^

CHAPTER V. 265

Teach rae thyself, O Lord, to seek, to find, and to
relish thee, in these divine books.

" 40. And ye will not come to rae, that ye might
have life."

It is a dreadful proof of hardness of heart in the
Jews, that they should choose rather to adhere to a law
of death, than to go to Christ, to whom this very law
refers and guides them, as to the author and fountain
of life. How much more hardened, then, is the
heart of a Christian, who has already received it,
and tasted the fruits thereof, if he still prefer the
death of sin before it ! What discouragement, what
despair, will not so soft a reproof, so tender and pre-
venting a love, remove ! But every thing is hard
and difficult to him whose heart is hardened. To
keep at a distance from Christ, is to avoid and fly
from life : it is in vain to seek it any where else.

" 41. f I receive not honour* from men."
j-# 2^r. My glory.]

To see the earnestness of the Son of God in so-
liciting us to. put our trust and confidence in him,
and in drawing sinners after him, one would imagine
that his honour and glory depended upon their faith,
and that he could not be happy unless they were so.
No, Lord, thy glory has not the least dependence
on ours ; and the esteem of men cannot possibly
either tempt thee, or increase thy happiness. But
we are those who, without thee, must necessarily be
eternally miserable.

" 42. But I know you, that ye have not the love
of God in you."

To see the great zeal of the Jews for the obser-
vance of the Sabbath, and for the law of God, should

Vol. III. M 57

266 ST. JOHN.

we not be apt likewise to imagine, that their hearts
were inflamed with the love of him. And yet all
this was nothing but the love of themselves, and of
human glory, which they would fain acquire from
the gifts of God. How common is this false zeal !
How deceitful is it ! There is in these persons
abundance of pride, vanity, and delusion; but they
have not the least degree of the love of God in them.
Do thou vouchsafe, O Lord, to shed abroad this
love in our hearts — thou, whom the extreme want
thereof, which thou sawest in mankind, drew down
from heaven.

" 43. I am come in my Father's name, and ye
receive me not : if another shall come in his own
name, him ye will receive."

See here some plain and evident marks that they
were never animated with the love of God, and that
they are fallen under great delusion. The first is,
that they have received persons who came in their
own name, having no mark of a divine mission, at
the same time that they have rejected those who
were authorized by sanctity of life, by the gifts of
the Holy Ghost, &c.

" 44. How can ye believe, which receive honour
one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh
from God only?"

The second mark is, that pride, and the love of
vain-dory, two vices most opposite to faith and sal-
vation, have been the distinguishing character of
these heads of a party; whereas that of the apostles,
and of apostolical men, consisted in humility, and in
carefully avoiding all human glory.

M 45. Do not think that I will accuse you to the

CHAPTER V. 267

Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses,
in whom ye trust."

The third mark, which shows that these men are
mistaken, and likewise have not the love of God,
is, that the very Scripture alone, in which they put
their whole confidence, is sufficient to accuse, convict,
and condemn them as seducers and corrupters of the
word of God. A real delusion and error is some-
times concealed under a false reverence for the word
of God, a false confidence in Christ, and a false love
of religion. Suffer yourselves, dear brethren, to be
convinced and condemned by the truth of the Scrip-
ture. Whoever does not follow the example of the
saints, must expect to have them for accusers.

" 46. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have
believed me : for he wrote of me."

The fourth mark or proof of delusion and error
is, that they have not, and cannot possibly have, a
right understanding of the Scriptures. The law
and the Scripture speak only of Jesus Christ. He
is the key of the books of the Old Testament, which
we can never understand nor relish, unless we read
them with a view to him, and that entire, as consist-
ing of head and members, and observing in them
every thing which concerns his body the church.

" 47. But if ye believe not his writings, how
shall ye believe my words?"

The fifth mark or proof of delusion is, that they
have assumed to themselves a power to believe, or
not believe, what they think fit, to despise the au-
thority of the church and of Christ himself, and to
subvert the whole foundation of the faith. En-
lighten, Lord, these blind people, and lead them

M 2

268 ST. JOHN.

back into the way of faith which they have forsaken.
They will believe whatever thou speakest to them
by thy word, if thou vouchsafe to write it in their
hearts by thy Spirit.

CHAPTER VI.

Sect. I. — The Miracle of the Five Loaves. Jesus
retires to avoid being made a Kifig.

" 1. After these things Jesus went over the sea
of Galilee, which is the sea of Tiberias. 2. And a
great multitude followed him, because they saw his
miracles which he did on them that were diseased.
3. And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he
sat with his disciples."

Jesus here shows his wisdom, in not provoking
the envious any longer by his presence; his charity,
in removing from them the occasions of sin : his hu-
militv, in withdrawing himself from the world after
such remarkable actions; his piety, in recollecting
himself in retirement after his preaching; his good-
ness, in not hiding himself from those who follow
him ; and his preference of the mean and illiterate
people, who hearken to the voice of miracles, while
the learned continue altogether deaf thereto. Let
us hearken to that of his virtues, which gives us a
more useful lesson than all the miracles which he
wrought on the body.

" 4<. And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was
nigh. 5. % When Jesus then lifted up his eyes, and
saw a great company come unto him, he saith unto
Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may
eat?"

CHAPTER VI. 269

When human means fail, God causes his power
to appear. Christ does not work miracles, till he
has showed the necessity there is for them; to teach
us never to ask or desire any without an absolute
necessity. He takes occasion from this want, and
from the approaching passover, to give his disciples
an emblem of the miraculous passover which he is
preparing for his church. Since his different miracles
denote his different qualities, it is necessary there
should be some to show that he is in all respects the
pastor of his sheep. Too faithless, too ungrateful
is he, who distrusts his goodness, providence, and
almighty power, for the support and nourishment
either of the body or of the soul.

"6. (And this he said to prove* him: for he
himself knew what he would do.)" [# Fr. Tempt.]

God tempts 'us, to prove and exercise our faith ;
the devil, to weaken and extinguish it. Let us
carefully observe and consider these two sorts of
temptations, that we may reap profit from them.
That of the devil, through the disposal of the divine
mercy? tends to make us sensible of our own weak-
ness, and to cure us of having any presumption of
our own strength. That of God, has a tendency in
itself to make us conceive a more lively belief of his
majesty and greatness, and to clear our minds of
those mean ideas, and human notions, which we are
apt to entertain concerning his almighty power.
Grant that I may know thee, O my God, and that
I may know myself.

" 7. Philip answered him, Two hundred penny-
worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every
one of them may take a little."

270 ST. JOHN.

Infinitely less will be sufficient to satisfy them all,
because he who made them all of nothing, can like-
wise feed them all out of nothing. Observe here
the common failing and defect of men under their
wants : their minds are more intent on the wants
themselves, than on the goodness, wisdom, and power
of God, who commands us to put our trust in him.
It is a sin against the established order of his wis-
dom, to expect that he should, without any necessity,
dispense with the ordinary rules of his providence.
It is a sin against the belief of his omnipotence, to
desire to subject it to human methods.

" 8. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's
brother, saith unto him, 9. There is a lad here,
which hath five barley-loaves, and two small fishes :
but what are they among so many?"

Five loaves and two small fishes are more than
enough in his hands who continually multiplies the
corn of the earth an hundred-fold, and raises out of
her bosom so many good things for the food and
nourishment of mankind, of little birds, and of the
smallest insects. Whoever is faithful in adoring
and praising God for all the benefits he does us by
the ordinary methods of his providence, will not find
his faith and confidence stagger when he stands in
r.eed of extraordinary assistances. The latter are as
easy to God as the former; but they afford us a
plainer proof of his mindfulness with respect to the
wants of particular persons, and of his continual
vigilance. It is his will that we should be made
sensible of the greatness of our want, that we may
set the greater value upon his assistance.

" 10. And Jesus said, Make the men sit down.

CHAPTER VI. 271

Now there was much grass in the place. So the
men sat down, in number about five thousand."

It is not so much for the sake of these five thou-
sand men that Christ is going to work this miracle,
as for the sake of all those who live in continual sub-
mission to the laws of providence. He who feeds
here five thousand men in an extraordinary manner,
and by a visible miracle, cannot he find means to
support this numerous family, which raises in the
mind of this father and mother so many uneasy and
distrustful thoughts? God works more invisible
miracles than visible; and the latter are designed
only to strengthen the belief of the former, in those
persons to whom providence is, as it were, obliged
to give some present security. Does not that abun-
dance of grass which God bringeth forth continually
for the cattle, justly upbraid men with their infidelity
or their distrust?

"11. And Jesus took the loaves; and when he
had given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and
the disciples to them that were set down ; and like-
wise of the fishes as much as they would."

Every thing wastes in the hands of man : but
every thing multiplies in those of the Son of God.
Before Christ feeds the body, he feeds and nourishes
the soul by the good example of his gratitude and
thankfulness to his Father. There is often found
iii a good pastor greater acknowledgment for that
which God confers upon him for the benefit and ad-
vantage of his people, than in the people themselves
who receive that advantage. Christ feeds only those
who, in sitting down, give a proof of their trust and
confidence in him by their obedience. Let us in

272 ST. JOHN.

this emblem contemplate our duties with respect to
the word of God and to the communion, the fruit
whereof is answerable to the disposition of our heart.
The more earnestly we hunger after them with a
sincere hunger of heart and will, the more benefit do
we still receive from them.

" 12. When they were filled, he said unto his
disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that
nothing be lost."

Every thing which Christ has consecrated by his
word or his Spirit, ought to be precious to us, and
nothing should be lost. We ought to manage our
temporal riches to the best advantage, not out of
covetousness, but out of respect to the gifts of God.
These fragments left by the poor are yet more pre-
cious : Christ does not take care about saving them,
till the poor have eaten and are satisfied. It is not
out of indigence that he causes these fragments to
be gathered up, since nothing is beyond the reach of
his power; but it is to make known the greatness of
the miracle, and to teach the rich themselves, not to
squander away unprofitably that which they have re-
ceived at the feast of reading the divine word. Let
us lose nothing, let us make some advantage of every
thing ; for even the least things are precious and
nourishing.

" 13. Therefore they gathered them together,
and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the
five barley-loaves, which remained over and above
unto them that had eaten."

The power and bounty of God surpass our wants.
The incredulity of man is happily disappointed, when
God gives him that which he could not presume

CHAPTER VI. 273

either to hope for or to ask. It often happens that
the wealth of the rich is diminished and lost, he-
cause they neglect to sow in the hands of the poor;
while the poor themselves become rich, because they
have been liberal and generous, even in the midst of
poverty, to those who were in greater want. A
pastor, being obliged to feed his flock at all times
and seasons, ought to be in a disposition to give that
which he has not perhaps at present, but which he
will find in the hands of the sovereign Pastor of souls.
God pours down his blessing upon such a confidence
as this in time of necessity, and the pastor enriches
himself whilst he feeds his people.

" 14. Then those men, when they had seen the
miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth that
Pronhet that should come into the world."

Miracles are the true marks of an extraordinary
mission from God. Christ is that prophet foretold
by Moses, (Deut. xviii. 15.) whom God was to raise
up from the midst of this people as one of their
brethren; to which prediction it is probable Christ
himself lately referred the scribes and Pharisees,
(chap. v. 46.) Passion shuts their eyes; but grati-
tude opens those of this illiterate multitude. The
worthy receiving of the communion, is a source of
light for us to know Christ, and of courage to own
and confess him. How long, O Lord, hast thou
vouchsafed to feed me in this desert, and I neither
know nor confess thee yet as I ought ! I am daily
at thy table, fed with thy word and truth, nourished
with thy body, and animated with thy blood, and I
yet hesitate to declare myself thy disciple by my life
and conversation.

m 3

274 ST. JOHN.

" 15. 51 When Jesus therefore perceived that they
would come and take him by force, to make him a
king, he departed again into a mountain himself
alone."

The fruit of receiving the holy communion, or of
reading the gospel, must not be for us only to know
and make profession of following Christ ; they must
likewise cause him to reign in our hearts. It is not
this reign or kingdom which he avoids; he came on
purpose to establish it, and, in order thereto, to teach
us by his own example to condemn the pomp of
human grandeur, and to decline high stations and
dignities, and whatever proceeds from the spirit of
the world. Lord, how few are there whose hearts
are open to this example, and who, by a holy retire-
ment, disappoint the designs which men have of rais-
ing and advancing them in the world !

Sect. II. — Christ walks upon the Sea. The
people follow him.

" 16. And when even was now come, his disciples
went down unto the sea, 17. And entered into a
ship, and went over the sea toward Capernaum :
and it was now dark, and Jesus was not come to
them."

Christ, who was very rarely absent from his dis-
ciples, leaves them, only in order to pray in the
mountains, or to avoid worldly greatness. There
are two reasons which not only give pastors a right,
but likewise sometimes oblige them, to separate them-
selves from all which is most near and dear to them.
1. The great occasion they have to seek God, and
to unite themselves to him by prayer. 2. The ne-

CHAPTER VI. 275

cessity they may be under of avoiding worldly em-
ployments, by a life entirely free not only from all
ambition, but from the very suspicion thereof.

" 18. And the sea arose, by reason of a great
wind that blew."

Nothing is more to be dreaded than the great
wind of temptation, when we are without Jesus
Christ, in the darkness of sin, or in the midst of the
stormy sea of this world. The devil never fails to
assault us with his wicked suggestions, and to use
his utmost endeavours to destroy us, when he sees
that Christ is not with us, and that our hearts are
left in darkness by his absence. Happy are we,
when this absence and darkness are designed only to
try us, when the one does not proceed from anger,
nor the other is inflicted upon us as a punishment.

" 19. So when they had rowed about five and
twenty or thirty furlongs, they see Jesus walking on
the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship: and they
were afraid."

It frequently happens, that what is designed for
our good makes us afraid, by reason of the weakness
of our faith. This often falls asleep in the midst of
benefits and favours, and requires temptations, dan-
gers, and afflictions to awaken it. We are more
sensible how much we stand in need of God and
Christ, when we fall into want, than when we live in
plenty ; when we are under the apprehension of evils,
than when we continue in the undisturbed enjoyment
of good things. Trouble and disorder of mind gen-
erally attends temptation in the weak, and is really
more dangerous than the temptation itself: because
the devil, taking advantage of that trouble and dis-

276 ST. JOHN.

order, assaults our faith, raises in our minds a dread
of Christ, and renders that suspicious to us which we
ought to look upon as our whole light and strength.

"20. But he saith unto them, It is I ; be not
afraid."

The presence and word of Christ remove all
fears : but he himself must make men sensible of
both, otherwise he is present only to the blind, and
speaks only to the deaf. What is man ? Nothing
but darkness and weakness, when he is in dangers;
full of distrust and apprehension of being deceived,
when assistance is vouchsafed him ; and utterly in-
capable of doing any thing without Christ, at all
times, and in all states and dispositions. Lord,
what conduct soever thou art pleased to observe to-
wards me, vouchsafe always to speak to me these
comfortable words, "It is I;" and thereby secure
me both from presumption and despair.

"21. Then they willingly received him into the
ship:* and immediately the ship was at the land
whither they went." [* Fr. Bark.]

We make a great progress in piety in a very little
time, when God is pleased to shed abroad in our
hearts his love and grace in great abundance. The
bark receives much more assistance from Christ when
he enters into it, than he does from the bark. Thus
it is with respect to the service of God and Christ:
the Master is more useful to the servant than the
servant to his Master; and the labours of the minis-
ters of the church more necessary to the salvation of
the ministers themselves, than to the glory of God.
Come, Lord, I beseech thee, to this soul, and vouch-
safe to enter into it by new assistances, that it may

CHAPTER VI. 277

soon reach the perfection to which it tends. Come
to thy church, animate thy ministers with thy Spirit,
perfect the saints, gather thy elect together, and give
thy whole body its complete fulness and stature, that
it may quickly arrive at its own country, its centre,
and its eternal rest, which is thyself.

" 22. *f[ The day following, when the people, which
stood on the other side of the sea, saw that there was
none other boat there, save that one whereunto his
disciples were entered, and that Jesus went not with
his disciples into the boat, but that his disciples were
gone away alone; 23. (Howbeit there came other
boats from Tiberias, nigh unto the place where thev
did eat bread, after that the Lord had given thanks ;)
24. When the people therefore saw that Jesus was
not there, neither his disciples, they also took shipping,
and came to Capernaum, seeking for Jesus."

Can we forbear seeking Christ with earnestness,
when we are sensible that we have lost sight of him
for some time? It is no unprofitable labour to in-
quire how he came to withdraw himself, why those
who fed us in his name have been taken away from
us, and frequently to revolve in our minds the graces
and benefits we have received from him. Let us be
very careful not to neglect those opportunities which
God is pleased to give us of finding him again, and
of re-uniting ourselves to him.

Sect. III. — The Meat which jjerishes not. Christ
the true Bread of Heaven. Does not his own
Will. Saves his Elect.

" 25. And when they had found him on the other
side of the sea, they said unto him. Rabbi, when
earnest thou hither ?"

278 ST. JOHN.

These people desire to be assured of the certainty
of his miraculous passage ; and it is a holy curiosity
and a rational zeal in them, not to suffer the wonder-
ful works of God to be buried in silence.

" 26. Jesus answered them, and said, Verily,
verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye
saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves,
and were filled."

Few persons seek Jesus Christ for his own sake :
the generality do it out of interest. It is good, fre-
quently to examine our own hearts and intentions in
this respect. We ought to seek God, and not his
gifts. The common inclination and disposition of
people in relation to miracles, was to think only of en-
joying the present temporal advantages arising from
them, without endeavouring to penetrate into the
designs of God in working them. The contemplation
of miracles ought to strengthen our faith, to raise our
minds up to God, and to fill us with admiration of
his greatness and goodness. It is the proper busi-
ness of pastors, after the example of Christ, to make
their people sensible of their failings, and to rectify
their faith.

" 27. Labour not for the meat which perisheth,
but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting
life, which the Son of man shall give unto you : for
him hath God the Father sealed."

The life of a Christian is not an idle and inactive
life. Application, fervency, and good works, are
necessary to nourish piety, and to obtain it of Christ.
If we take a view of all states and conditions in the
world, is it not true, that we shall find almost all
mankind entirely taken up, either with the care of

CHAPTER VI. 279

providing for themselves " the meat which perisheth,"
or with the thoughts of raising a fortune yet more
vain and perishing, as if life were bestowed upon
them to no other end and purpose ! Who is there
who seriously applies his thoughts to " that meat
which endureth unto everlasting life ?" What man
makes it his business to be a Christian, and to live
by faith ? This is a gift of God, but man must
co-operate with it. It is the will of man which be-
lieves, but it is God who forms therein the act of
believing. None but God can confer this gift upon
us ; and the Son of man is here said to give it, be-
cause he is really and truly God, being the express
image and character of the Father's substance, and
authorized as such by the seal of miracles. Vouch-
safe, O Jesus, to be continually in my heart, and
to work therein as the author and finisher of my
faith !

" 28. Then said they unto him, What shall we
do, that we might work the works of God ?"

Faith admonishes us to have recourse to God, and
to implore his assistance ; and the first effect of this
assistance is, that the darkness of our understanding
is enlightened. So great is this darkness, that we
frequently mistake works merely human for works of
God. To make works really such, it is necessary
that the Spirit of God should be the cause and prin-
ciple of them : his will their rule, and his glory their
end. We have always sufficient occasion to see and
acknowledge our own ignorance in the ways of God,
and to beseech him to direct us in them. Without
his light, the most clear-sighted are but darkness.

" 29. Jesus answered and said unto them, This

280 ST. JOHN.

is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom
he hath sent."

The great work of God in us, is that of a lively
faith which worketh by love. Let us, without ceas-
ing, importune him to perfect and complete this work
in us. The multiplicity and diversity of the works
of the law, which served only to prefigure Christ,
and could not justify the sinner, are now reduced to
one single means of salvation, namely, Jesus Christ.
Thus the law of works, which only exalted and puffed
man up, is now entirely reduced to the sole law of
faith, which humbles him, and excludes all boasting;
because faith, which is the principle of the righteous-
ness of God, is no other than the work of God
in us. When will it be, O Jesus, that thou wilt
perfect this work in me, by rendering me uni-
formlv obedient to whatever thou requirest of me
by faith ?

" 30. They said therefore unto him, What sign
showest thou then, that we may see, and believe
thee? what doest thou work ? 31. Our fathers did
eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave
them bread from heaven to eat."

What unaccountable blindness, what hardness of
heart is this, to ask such a question after so many
signs and miracles ! And yet this is but a shadow
of the present blindness and hardness of sinners,
after the accomplishment of all the mysteries of
Christ, and after having received so many favours
and graces at his hands. Man, full of himself, ex-
tols his own works as much as possibly he can. His
want of attention, and his insensibility with respect
to those of God, cause him either wholly to forget,

CHAPTER VI. 281

or little to regard, the greatest wonders of the divine
power. To undervalue benefits received, is a high
instance of ingratitude, and an indignity which makes
the patience of Christ appear more eminent and illus-
trious. It is the atheist who is still seeking after
proofs of a Deity, though he walks every day amidst
apparent miracles, which, having continued from the
beginning of the world in one and the same course
and order, and with an unchangeable exactness and
regularity, are on this very account more to be ad-
mired than those which were only transient.

" 32. Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily,
I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from *
heaven ; but my Father giveth you the true bread
from* heaven." [* Fr. Of.]

What strange mildness is this towards such brut-
ish and ungrateful people ! We see here in Christ
no manner of application and endeavour to set off
the greatness of his miracle ; but his only care is,
to instruct them in the mystery of his incarnation,
whereby the bread of angels became the bread of
men. He here teaches pastors not to leave their
people in error, and under false notions of religion,
by showing the Jews that the manna was neither
the bread of heaven, nor yet given by Moses. It
is the duty of a pastor, to use his utmost endeavours
to raise the minds of his flock from sensible and cor-
poreal objects to things invisible and eternal : as
Christ here raises those of these people from the
figure to the truth, from the food of the body to
that of the soul. Christ is that wonderful and di-
vine bread which faith alone can discern and know.
He is, 1. The gift of the Father. 2. An eternal

282 ST. JOHN.

gift, which he never resumes. 3. The true bread,
which gives and sustains the true life. 4. The true
bread of heaven, where lie received his celestial and
eternal origin, and from whence he came down to
have a temporal beginning here on earth.

M 33. For the bread of God is he which cometh
down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world."

He is, 5. The bread of God, which he alone can
give, because he alone begets him of his own sub-
stance. He is, 6. That bread which restores life to
sinners, and causes the children of God to live eter-
nally. O bread of God ! thou art life indeed, true
life, life eternal, the life both of the body and of the
soul, and the life not only of one people, but of all na-
tions! Grant that we may seek thee, that we may
feed upon thee here below, and be thou ever the
nourishment and delight of our hearts !

" 34. Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore
give us this bread."

My God, how closely shut against the truths of
salvation is the mind of man before it is enlightened
by faith ! No dulness, no defect whatever of un-
derstanding should be able to discourage a pastor,
according to the example set by the Prince of pas-
tors. This bread is present before their eyes, but
it is far from their hearts ; and they ask for it with-
out knowing it. Our prayers, O Lord, are perhaps
more imperfect sometimes, and yet thou dost not re-
ject them !

" 35. And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread
of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger;
and he that believeth on me shall never thirst."

In the 7th place, Christ is the bread which sus-

CHAPTER VI. 283

tains, strengthens, and perfects life. 8. He fills
and satisfies all his members. — There is but one life
which deserves this name, and that is the life which
we have in Jesus Christ, and of which he is himself
the principle and the food to all eternity. We must
of necessity be incorporated into this bread, in order
to receive life from it ; and it is by means of a lively
faith that we approach Christ, that we enter, as it
were, and are changed into him, that we may become
a part of this living bread, and be eternally offered
therein upon the table and altar of the living God.
O eternal Bread, who earnest to us by means of the
incarnation — eternal Truth, which art alone the end
of all our desires, and the only bread which can
satisfy my soul — thou filled me with hope, by dis-
covering thyself so clearly to persons so unworthy as
these here before us were ! Thou findest in those
whom thou quickeuest no merit at all, but by quick-
ening them thou createst some in them.

" 36. But I said unto you, That ye also have
seen me, and believe not."

Neither the preaching of Christ, nor his presence,
nor his miracles, are sufficient to induce men to be-
lieve in him. To effect this, he must speak and
preach to the invisible ears of the heart ; he must
render himself present to it by the gift of faith, and
work internal miracles therein. There are abundance
of persons in the world whom Christ might justly
upbraid in the same manner, after having made him-
self, as it were, continually visible in his church for
so many ages, by the wonders which his Holy Spirit
has wrought in it.

" 37. All that the Father giveth me shall come

284 ST. JOHN.

to me: and him that cometh to me I will in nowise
cast out."

Adorable secret this, relating to the gift or pre-
sent which God makes of his elect to his Son ! — a
gift which is neither preceded nor caused by any
merit, but which is the principle and source of that
share which all those who are given to Christ are to
have in his merits, that they may obtain some in and
by him. None of all these will fail to come to Je-
sus Christ, and to remain and continue in him by a
persevering charity. This is a gift which includes
and comprehends in it all others. There is no other
reason to be given for the continuance of other per-
sons in incredulity, but only the corruption and vo-
luntary hardness of their heart: but the reason why
their corruption is not removed, nor the hardness of
their heart surmounted, is a profound and incompre-
hensible secret. Let us not amuse ourselves with
disputing concerning this subject, but let us be con-
tented to admire and adore. A pastor or minister of
the church, after the example of Christ, ought to
receive all those whom God sends unto him, and to
use his utmost endeavours to save them all.

" 38. For I came down from heaven, not to do
mine own will, but the will of him that sent me."

In this life we have, after the example of Christ,
but one thing to do, but one thing to seek, and that
is the will of God. Let us, in this wise and adorable
will, and no where else, seek after the reason of the
choice of his elect, and of the preference which he
gives them in the distribution of his graces. Christ
confines himself to this will, and yet human presump-
tion would fain proceed farther, and sound the depth

CHAPTER VI. 285

of his counsels, and the secrets of his wisdom. O
intolerable rashness ! Observe here three main
points in relation to bishops and other pastors. 1. A
pure and blameless entrance into the ministry, by a
lawful call from God, and by the mission of the
church. 2. The sole end of the ministry, which is
to promote, the designs and will of God. 3. The
manner of exercising it, conformable to the humility
of the sovereign Pastor. — How low ought that per-
son to stoop, in order to set forward the salvation of
souls, who holds the plaee of a God who came down
from heaven !

" 39. And this is the Father's will which hath
sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should
lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last
day."

Every bishop, every pastor, ought to look upon all
the souls in his diocess or parish as given to Jesus
Christ, and frequently to say to himself, that " it is
the Father's will that he should lose none of them."
Let us with confidence believe that we are of the
number of those whom the Father has given to his
Son ; and let this confidence, which is a part of
Christian hope, cause us to serve God with courage,
and with the joy of children who expect and wait for
an inheritance in heaven. We are in the hands of
Christ, as a gift or a trust which God has deposited
therein : and have nothing to fear except from our
own will. But, Lord, art not thou the absolute
master thereof? Christ, in raising up his elect to
restore them to his Father, will evidently show the
world, which imagined that it had deprived them of
all life, and destroyed them irrecoverably, that their
loss was no other than their salvation.

286 ST. JOHN.

"40. And this is the will of him * that sent me,
that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on
him, may have everlasting life : and I will raise him
up at the last day." l*Fr. My Father.]

All those whom God, by an absolute and effica-
cious will, intends to save through Jesus Christ, are
infallibly saved. Observe here three infallible effects
of predestination, and of the Father's will as to the
salvation of his elect. 1. Their being called, accord-
ing to the purpose of his will, and incorporated into
Jesus Christ, (ver. 37, 38.) 2. Their final perse-
verance, the grace and gift whereof will be infallibly
conferred upon them, (ver. 39.) 3. Everlasting life,
which will crown the other gifts, (ver. 40.) — Let us
often adore this sacred will, which is the principle and
source of our sanctification and happiness. It is not
without design that mention is here made of it three
times together. It is in this will, and not in our own,
that we must put our whole trust and confidence.
Cause me, O Jesus, to co-operate therewith by mine ;
and grant that I may have no other will, but only to
render myself conformable to that of thy Father.

Sect. IV. — The Murmuring of the Jews. He who
hath learned of the Father cometh to the Son.

" 41. The Jews then murmured at him, because
he said, I am the bread which came down from
heaven."

Great truths disturb the weak, and blind the
wicked, at the same time that they give comfort and
consolation to the children of God. Neither the
great number of dogs who rend the preachers of the
truth, nor the multitude of swine who trample it

CHAPTER VI. 287

under their feet, ought to be any obstacle to the
feeding of the lambs and the doves. There will be
ever in the very church itself murmurers, who will
lift up their voice to interrupt the progress of Chris-
tian and evangelical truths ; but there will be like-
wise still some religious worshippers and undaunted
lovers of them. Let us rather die than be of the
number of the former.

" 42. And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of
Joseph, whose father and mother we know? how is
it then that he saith, I came down from heaven ?"

The meanness of Christ's temporal birth renders
the greatness of his eternal birth incredible to carnal
men ; as the majesty of his divine being has made
others question the reality of his human nature.
Reason is always mistaken when it pretends to judge
by itself, or to make the senses judges of the mys-
teries of religion ; instead of having recourse to the
authority of the word of God.

" 43. Jesus therefore answered and said unto them,
Murmur not among yourselves. 44. No man can
come to me, except the Father, which hath sent me,
draw him : and I will raise him up at the last day."

See here the admirable meekness and gentleness
of Christ towards those very persons who blaspheme
him. My God ! who is there amongst us who could
thus patiently endure to have his rights and chief
dignity contested ? Let us earnestly endeavour to
imitate Christ, in not suffering ourselves to be trans-
ported with anger against those who oppose the
truth. Whoever is thoroughly sensible from whence
the difference proceeds, which there is betwixt a
teachable and an obstinate person, in respect of the

288 ST. JOHN.

divine word, humbles himself, and adores in secret
the power of God's grace over him to whom he shows
mercy, and the justice of his conduct in reference to
him whom he leaves under his obduracy and perverse-
ness. We cannot obey the voice which calls us to
Jesus Christ, except he himself draws us to him, in
causing us to will that to which we were averse be-
fore. Men come to Christ by means of faith and
charity : but either of these is a singular and free gift
of God. This consideration ought not to discourage
us, but to excite in us ardent desires, and fervent
prayer. It is at the time of the general resurrection
that the great distinction and separation will be made
in the sight of men, and that the whole business of
salvation will be perfected and consummated. It is
on this account that Christ repeats these words so
often, " I will raise him up at the last day," that we
may not undertake to judge before that time.

" 45. It is written in the prophets, And they
shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore
that hath heard,* and hath learned of the Father,
cometh unto me." [*Fr. The Father's voice.]

It is the peculiar privilege of the new law, that
men are taught and moved by the internal and al-
mighty voice of God. Those who were so before
Christ's appearance in the world, belonged to his
covenant, and, having received of his Spirit, were
Christians by way of anticipation. Grace is there-
fore that voice of the Father, which teaches and in-
structs men inwardly, and causes them to come unto
Jesus Christ. Whoever comes not unto him, after
having heard the outward voice of the Son, is not
taught by the Father. It is the property of his

CHAPTER VI. 289

adorable voice, to open of itself the ear of the heart,
and to make itself heard by the most deaf, in curing
their spiritual deafness. Vouchsafe, O my God, to
make us even here below disciples of thy school, that
we may be such to all eternity.

" 46. Not that any man hath seen the Father,
save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father."

The school wherew the Father instructs mankind,
is a school which is concealed and hidden from the
senses, and known only to the Son. God is visible
only to the invisible eyes of the heart ; these are they
which we must open, purify, and expose to this in-
visible and eternal light. Christ, by the prerogative
of his eternal birth, is the witness and channel of all
truth, and the source from whence all our knowledge
of God is derived. It is therefore in and by thee,
O Jesus, that we must seek it : it is from thee alone
that we can receive it.

" 47. Verily f verily, I say unto you, He that be-
lieveth on me hath everlasting life."

Christ is the everlasting life. of his members: it
begins in this world by faith and charity, and is con-
summated in the other by glory. Faith is the root,
and eternal happiness the fruit : grace gives a right
to the treasures of heaven, and glory puts us into
possession of them. We have here the earnest,
pledge, and first-fruits of them in the Holy Spirit ;
we shall have the fulness and all the advantages
thereof in heaven, by the perfection and consumma-
tion of his love in us. Everlasting life is comprised
in Jesus Christ; and faith, whereby he dwells in our
hearts, gives them eternal life, but hidden like him,
and as it were wrapped up in the veil of faith.

Vol. III. N m

290 ST. JOHN.

" 48. I am that bread of life."

How great and comprehensive is this sentence in
its brevity ! Christ is life in all respects, and every
thing is life in him. He is life eternal by his divine
essence; the word of life by his birth from and in
the bosom of the Father; the bread of life for the
angels from the creation of the world ; the bread of
life in respect of his own sacred humanity, by means
of his incarnation; and the bread of life to men by
faith in this world, and by glory in the world to
come. He is the principle and author of life, sub-
stituted in the place of Adam, who became the prin-
ciple and author of death to all his posterity. He is
the bread of life, which not to eat is sufficient to
cause us to die eternally, God having made the life
of men to depend upon it; which to eat but once as
Wfi ought, would be sufficient to keep us from ever
dying, and which we ought to be eating continually,
because we ought to believe in him continually, and
to be united to him in the most close and intimate
manner.

" 49. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilder-
ness, and are dead. 50. This is the bread which
cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat there-
of, and not die. 51. I am the living bread which
came down from heaven. "

What could the Jews expect from a kind of food
which was dead and inanimate, but only that it should
leave them subject to the death both of the soul and
of the body? Such as their law and religion were,
such was their food : dead, figurative, and of no man-
ner of virtue or efficacy towards the attainment of
the true righteousness, which is the life of the soul.

CHAPTER VI. 291

Thou alone, O Jesus, art the true bread ! not formed
in the air like the manna, and spread upon the face
of the earth by the ministry of angels, to preserve
this people alive for some time, but born in heaven,
sent down to men by the incarnation, ever living and
giving life, continually infusing the life of faith and
charity into thy members in the wilderness of this
world, and a continual source and principle of im-
mortal life in thy saints, on which they will feed eter-
nally without wasting it, without being cloyed there-
with, and without desiring any other thing whatever.

Sect. V. — The living Bread: the Jlesh of Christ
represented in the Eucharist,

" — If any man eat of this bread, he shall live
for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh,
which I will give for the life of the world."

The love of Jesus Christ is liberal and communi-
cative, and that to such a degree, that it is not con-
tented till he has given himself; and that not for his
own satisfaction or happiness, but for ours. It is not
sufficient to thy heart, O Jesus, to unite itself to
mine in one respect alone ; thy love causes thee to
find means of giving thyself to me both many times
and in divers manners, and still with new advantage :
as my Head, and the Fountain of my life in the in-
carnation ; as my Saviour, and the Victim of my sal-
vation upon the cross; and as my bread and food in
the eucharist. O infinite gift ! O incomprehensible
ways of giving thyself! O divine contrivances of the
love of Jesus ! O ungrateful, and worse than ungrate-
ful heart of a Christian, if he do not live more to
Christ than to himself!

n 2

292 ST. JOHN.

" 52. The Jews therefore strove among them-
selves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to
eat ?"

By much reasoning and disputing in a manner
altogether human, concerning the mysteries of God,
men lose both the faith and the fruit of them. This
language of the Jews is that of all those who amuse
themselves with vain disputes concerning the gifts of
God, instead of receiving them with faith and grati-
tude. We would fain comprehend the effects of
the love and power of God ; and these effects are
suitable to the love and power of the Creator, on no
other account but because they are incomprehensible
to the creature. Let us, without the least hesita-
tion, believe the word and promises of God ; let us
use our utmost endeavours to render ourselves worthy
of them, and let us leave to him the care of finding
out the proper means to accomplish them.

Sect. VI. — The Jlesh of Christ gives life and im-
mortality.

" 53. Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily,
I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son
of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you."

Nothing less than the body and blood of Christ is
sufficient to sustain the divine life of a Christian.
Of what words should Christ have made use to con-
firm his promise of giving us his flesh to eat, and his
blood to drink, if these are not sufficient ? It is by
faith that we live upon this food, though it is by the
mouth that we eat it : but it is only by a life and by
actions of faith, that we can know whether we live by
that which we eat or not.

CHAPTER VI. 293

" 54. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my
blood, hath eternal life ; and I will raise him up at
the last day."

He who thoroughly understands the economy of
the Christian religion, the main part of which is the
sacrifice of Jesus Christ, is sensible of the necessity
of this eating of his flesh and drinking of his blood.
The church militant of all ages could not possibly
have communicated and partaken outwardly of the
Victim of the cross, if this Victim had not been re-
presented in all ages by real sacrifices, which pro-
mised a communion still more real in a real and sub-
sisting sacrifice. This is the thing, for which, O
Jesus, thou hast been pleased to provide by the won-
derful contrivance and institution of the eucharistic
communion, which is, as it were, a supplement to the
sacrifice of the cross, (to which communion was want-
ing,) a communion which cannot be expressed, and
which is necessary to salvation by an implicit desire
at least, every grace of Christ having a relation to
and dependence upon the holy eucharist. We com-
municate in this life by a spiritual communion, that
we may partake of the mysteries, the merits, and Spirit
of Jesus Christ. We shall communicate by a spi-
ritual communion in heaven, that we may partake of
the eternal life and immortal glory of Christ, in a soul
perfectly happy, and a body raised up at the last day.

" 55. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood
is drink indeed."

Yes, Lord, I believe that thou by thy flesh and
blood art the true food which preserves my soul from
death, and will restore life to my body. Oh, let me
not be so unhappy as by the corruption of my heart

294 ST. JOHN.

to turn this bread of life into deadly poison, and to
cause this plant of immortality to bring forth fruits
of death. Since thy flesh and blood are the meat
and drink of my soul, grant me, Lord, the grace not
to deprive it of this food by my own negligence.
Let my greatest care be to prepare myself for it. Let
it be my only grief to see myself deprived thereof for
my repeated acts of infidelity.

" 56. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my
blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him."

He who eats the flesh of Christ is most closely
joined and united to him by charity, and by a union
which is, as it were, natural and corporeal. For
it is a natural and reciprocal communion betwixt
the head and the members, betwixt Jesus Christ and
his church. He gives himself to us, and dwells in
us : we give ourselves to him, and dwell in him. He
is the fulness of his church, and his church of him.
He, as it were, feeds on us, and fills himself with us,
and grows in us as in his members, that he may ar-
rive at that fulness and perfection which his mystical
body ought to have. Grant, O Jesus, that by de-
siring and engaging thee to come, and dwell, and
crow in me, I may answer the desire which thou art
pleased to manifest that I should dwell in thee ; and
let me raise no obstacle in thy way by my irregular
desires, and my hunger after earthly things.

i( 57. As the living Father hath sent me, and I
live by the Father; so he that eateth me, even he
shall live by me."

The Father, in begetting his Word or Son, com-
municates to him his life ; in sending this Son by
the incarnation, and uniting him to flesh and blood,

CHAPTER VI. 295

he communicates this divine life to the sacred huma-
nity of Christ, who receives this life of, in, and for
his Father. Thus the faithful Christian, in receiv-
ing the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ, is made par-
taker of his divine nature, his life, his inclinations,
&c. in, by, and for Jesus Christ himself. O my
God ! what wilt thou bestow upon man in heaven,
since even here on earth thou causest him to live so
divine a life? O divine life of a Christian soul,
which hast thy first original in the bosom of the liv-
ing Father, who lives of himself, and communicates
his life to the Son, and by him to the flesh and blood
to which he is united, and by the most lively represen-
tation of this adorable flesh and blood to his mem-
bers, conveying it by this channel into their hearts !
This is not the ingenious thought of a mystical
divine, who lets his fancy take a flight; it is a plain
and literal truth, delivered by the eternal truth itself,
and which alone ought to disengage us from every
thing which is capable of rendering us unworthy to
receive this life, of causing us to lose it, or of weak-
ening it in us.

" 58. This is that bread which came down from
heaven : not as your fathers did eat manna, and are
dead. He that eateth of this bread shall live for
ever."

The eucharist is the manna of Christians in the
desert of this world. Wretched is that person, who,
either through disgust or slothfulness, feeds not on
it ; but more wretched still is he, who, receiving it
in sin, or under the habit and love thereof, eats his
own judgment and condemnation. If we eat this
adorable manna with the ingratitude, infidelity, dis-

296 ST. JOHN.

gust, murmuring, and untractableness of the Jews,
this manna, instead of preserving us from dying, will
giveus a double death, and instead of leading us toward
the promised land, and introducing us thereinto, will
carry us at a farther distance and exclude us from it.
O living Bread ! cause me to live upon and in thee.
Bread of heaven ! vouchsafe to conduct me thither.
O eternal Bread ! inspire me with a true desire of
eternity, till thou art pleased to put me into posses-
sion of that blessed life.

Sect. VII. — The Disciples offended. The Apostles
continue steadfast. One of them is a Devil.

" 59. These things said he in the synagogue, as
he taught in Capernaum. 60. Many therefore of
his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is
a hard saying ; who can hear it ?"

The words of eternal truth are hard sayings, but
they are such only to those who have a hard heart.
Men must submit their understanding to the yoke of
faith, and soften their heart by a tractable disposi-
tion. The most saving words are not to all persons
words of salvation. The school of Christ is not to
all his disciples a school of light and truth. It is to
every one of us such as our heart is ; because the
heart itself is this school. It happens very frequently
that those very truths which men would not dare
contradict in the gospel, and in the mouth of the Son
of God, they are not at all afraid to censure as hard
and carried too far, when they meet with them in the
writings, or hear them from the mouth of the dis-
ciples.

"61. When Jesus knew in himself that his dis-

CHAPTER VI. 297

ciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this
offend you ?"

Jesus knows the bottom of the heart, and by that
means condemns the impiety of his unbelieving dis-
ciples. Let us be ashamed to complain that we are
not always favourably heard, since we see the most
sacred truths exposed to murmuring and contradic-
tion, and made an occasion of scandal or offence.
This will ever be the case as long as the world con-
tinues what it is, namely, a society of enemies to
the truth, and the school of scandal and infidelity.
Doubts and scruples in relation to some certain truths
may possibly arise in the minds of true disciples ; but
then they either suppress them by faith, or hum-
bly propose them with the temper of a disciple, but
never murmur, or are offended at them.

" 62. What and if ye shall see the Son of man
ascend up where he was before?"

When we are perplexed with any doubts concern-
ing matters of faith, we must raise our minds from
the humiliations of Christ to the contemplation of
his greatness, power, immortality, divinity, &c. The
ascension is a full proof of all the mysteries and truths
delivered by the Son of God, and particularly of the
incarnation, whereby the bread of God came forth
from God, and came down from heaven in becoming
man.

" 63. It is the Spirit that quickeneth ; the flesh
profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you,
they are spirit, and they are life.''

The flesh of Jesus Christ is, to the children of
Adam, the principle of a new life by means of the in-
carnation, on no other account but only because it is

N 3

298 ST. JOHN.

united to the divine Word, which is essentially spirit
and life. It is the bread and fountain oflife in the
eucharist to none but those who have the spirit and
life of faith. The body and letter of Christ's words
become the bread oflife and understanding, when we
receive them with the spiritual discernment of faith,
and feed upon them with the relish of charity. What
abundance of spiritual riches are treasured up in this
ark of Christ's body ! How many mysteries are con-
cealed under this sacred veil ! How much grace and
light under the external figures of Christ's word !

" 64. But there are some of you that believe not.
For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were
that believed not, and who should betray him."

It is therefore faith which opens this ark, which
pierces through this veil, which unfolds these sacred
signs, and finds therein the spirit and the life ; whilst
infidelity sees nothing but what is carnal, and, con-
sulting only the senses, receives from them an an-
swer only of death. There are two sorts of sacri-
legious communions in respect of the body and of
the word of Jesus Christ : one by infidelity, which
believes nothing therein; the other by sin, which
betrays, delivers up, and crucifies Christ, by the abuse
either of his body and blood, or of his word. Suffer
not, I beseech thee, the least degree of either of
these in my heart, O Lord, who searchest the very
bottom of it. A man is not necessarily holy for be-
ing in the company of holy persons, or even of the
most holy Jesus himself; but he must needs be ex-
ceeding holy, who endures with so much patience
and mildness the company of a traitor, and of other
unbelieving persons.

CHAPTER VI. 299

" 65. And he said, Therefore said I unto you,
that no man can come unto me, except it were given
unto him of my Father."

The exercise of faith is no less difficult than the
practice of other virtues. The grace necessary to
both is given to some, and not to others. He who
has received it ought to fear, because he may possi-
bly lose it. He who has not received it should hope,
because he may yet receive it. Christ describes this
by three different characters : being drawn by the
Father, (ver. 44.) being taught by the Father, (ver.
45.) and being given of the Father, (ver. 65.) The
first denotes the efficaciousness of this drawing or
attraction of God. The second shows, that it is an
attraction of light and love, which causes us to know
the truth, and to love it. The third assures us,
that it is altogether free, and is no other than the
pure gift of God.

" 66. % From that time many of his disciples went
back, and walked no more with him."

Temptation gives an opportunity of discerning
true disciples from hypocrites, and such as are dis-
ciples only for a time. A preacher or spiritual di-
rector may be deserted without his own fault. This
is a slight humiliation, which yet is not always borne
without concern and trouble. Our blessed Lord, in
bearing it himself, sanctifies it, and teaches us to
bear it without disturbance. We ought to pity and
lament those who loathe and grow weary of truth or
virtue, and to humble ourselves through the appre-
hension either of our having contributed thereto, or
of our falling into the same fatal distaste and aversion
ourselves.

300 ST. JOHN.

" 67. Then said Jesus unto, the twelve, Will ye
also go away?"

Christ stands in need of no man in the world
himself; but there is no person in the world who
does not stand in need of him. This is a just ground
for us to fear, and to humble ourselves under the
apprehension, lest we should do something which
may oblige him to forsake us. He is not a master
who has no concern for his servants, but he would
have none but such as engage themselves in his ser-
vice freely and of their own accord. His only design
in trying them, is to give them an occasion of re-
flecting upon the happiness of their vocation, and to
cause them to value it the more. Lord, leave me
not thus to my own will. To be willing to go away
and leave thee, is to be willing to perish ; and I shall
infallibly be willing to do it, if thou leavest my will
to itself.

" 68. Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord,
to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eter-
nal life."

There is no master like Jesus Christ. His school
is that of eternal life. But what a school, what a
master, what doctrine is this ! He is himself the
very truth which he teaches, the eternal and subsist-
ing, the living and quickening truth ; he is life itself,
and life eternal, who teaches both truth and life, in-
spiring them into our understanding by his light, and
into our heart by his love. To whom then shall we
go, O Jesus, that we may learn to live, and live eter-
nally on the truth? He well deserves to find no-
thing but delusion and death, who seeks for truth
and life from any but from thee alone.

CHAPTER VI. 301

" 69. And we believe, and are sure, that thou art
that Christ, the Son of the living God."

This is a most perfect profession of faith, which
it is of great use frequently to make. There is a
faith which is simple and illiterate ; and there is one
which is more enlightened, and which amounts almost
to evidence ; but it is such evidence as proceeds from
the supernatural light of God, and not from the
things themselves, nor from human understanding.
There is one sort of learning which is hurtful to
faith, namely, worldly learning, which is nothing but
pride and ostentation ; and there is another sort
which edifies, and which supports and strengthens
faith : such was that of Paul, who saw Jesus Christ
in the Scriptures, and him alone ; and to whom the
whole order and economy of the events, laws, cere-
monies, actions, and circumstances of the Old Tes-
tament, served as a picture wherein he beheld Christ
drawn as it were at full length, while the common
sort of Christians saw him only in miniature, and in
the short representation of a plain and simple faith.
Unspeakably happy is he who has such a faith, and
lives up thereto. But miserable are those learned
persons who study and know every thing except
Jesus Christ.

" 70. Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen
you twelve, and one of you is a devil?"

The being duly called to the ecclesiastical office
is not sufficient, if a man live not suitably to that holy
vocation. There never was a call more certain than
that of Judas ; and yet never was any man more un-
worthy and unfaithful. The life of a brute, the mind
of a devil, in a person called to an angelical state of

302 ST. JOHN.

life, is indeed a monster, but not so uncommon as
those of nature. People ought not to take offence
and to be scandalized at the disorders either of priests
or Christians: neither the church nor the priesthood
is less the true church or priesthood of Christ on
that account.

"71. He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Si-
mon : for he it was that should betray him, being one
of the twelve."

An apostle, chosen by Christ himself, is a traitor
and a devil ! what ecclesiastical person has not reason
to tremble ! Adorable is the conduct of Jesus Christ,
in leaving his apostles so long under so dreadful an
uncertainty ; every one of them having cause suffi-
cient to mistrust himself, and being obliged not to
judge his neighbour, nor even to suspect that he in-
tended to commit so heinous a crime. Fear and dis-
trust of our own weakness; an obligation to watch over
our heart, and carefully to observe ourselves ; a dread
of sin, and Christian humility : these are the fruits
of this holy solicitude which God produces from it by
his grace.

CHAPTER VII.

Sect. I. — Christ's Relations ambitious. The
World hates those who reprove it.

" 1. After these things Jesus walked in Gali-
lee : for he would not walk in Jewry, because the
Jews sought to kill him."

Christ avoids persecution by withdrawing himself,
and not by interposing his power : and this on purpose

CHAPTER VII. 303

to confound the pride of men. He does not fly from
death ; but, by declining it at present, he seeks to do
the will of his Father, and waits his proper season.
To be eager and impatient to suffer, is not always a
sign of perfection ; and it is often a great fault not to
retire from persecution. For a man to sacrifice his
life for the sake of God, is no other than a work of
God; but for this very reason it must be done only
according to the appointment, at the time, and in the
Spirit of God.

" 2. Now the Jews' feast of tabernacles was at
hand."

The feasts of the Jews are still, with greater rea-
son, the feasts of Christians; because they set before
their eyes the benefits of God, and the principal
points of their duty. The Passover is our deliver-
ance from the bondage of sin by Jesus Christ ; the
feast of Pentecost, God's eternal covenant with us
through his Spirit ; and that of Tabernacles, reminds
us of the continual protection of his grace, of his
watchfulness and providence over his church militant
in the wilderness of this world, and in our passage
through this life ; and of that state of travel, sojourn-
ing, and warfare, wherein we must continue till our
entrance into the promised land of heaven, and into
the eternal rest of God, which will be our perfect de-
liverance from sin, and the consummation of the divine
covenant.

"3. His brethren therefore said unto him, Depart
hence, and go into Judea, that thy disciples also may
see the works that thou doest."

This conduct of our blessed Lord's relations, is a
lively emblem of the ambition and vanity of those

304 ST. JOHN.

parents, who put their children upon undertaking
eminent employments in the church, and showing
their talents in the world, under pretence of promot-
ing the glory of God. Happy is that person who
gives no ear to them ! Blind rashness this of flesh
and blood ! which, without knowledge, virtue, or
authority, subjects to itself the vocation of the minis-
ters of the altar, and pretends to direct all their steps
in the exercise of the sacerdotal office. False pru-
dence, sacrilegious avarice, barbarous ambition this of
carnal parents ! to put out as it were to use (but
what dreadful use !) the good qualities of their chil-
dren, their talents, their ecclesiastical revenues, their
call, their employment, their life, and their salvation,
or rather their eternal damnation ! The voice of
self-love alone does but too often excite ministers,
whose labours in places less exposed to the world are
attended with certain and visible success, to leave
them, in order to exercise their office in a station
more suitable, as they imagine, to their great capa-
cities ; but in reality more full of rocks and shelves
to destroy their own souls, without promoting the
salvation of others.

" 4. For there is no man that doeth any thing in
secret, and he himself seeketh to be known openly :
if thou do these things, show thyself to the world."

That person is no better than mad who takes no
care to shut his ears against the voice of pride, which
is continually crying out to us that we must show
ourselves to the world. How full of rashness, in-
justice, and ignorance is this speech ! as if God, in
the distribution of his talents and spiritual graces,
could have any other end besides his own glory ; and

CHAPTER VII. 305

his servants might propose to themselves some other
end, form quite different designs, and put their own
glory in the place of his ! My God, how little do
the children of men comprehend the holiness of thy
ways, since they perceive not in thy Scriptures, and in
thy whole conduct towards thy apostles and servants,
that it is upon the abasement of the creature, and
upon the humiliation of Christ and his ministers, that
thou art pleased to raise thy glory and thy church !

" 5. For neither did his brethren believe in him."

See here the source of that blind ambition which
carnal parents have in respect of their children who
have been bred up clergymen ; it is because they
have no faith, and lay no stress at all upon the truths
of the gospel, or upon the promise and hope of eter-
nal salvation. No persons whatever give their ad-
vice in ecclesiastical and spiritual matters with greater
confidence and assurance, than those who have not
even any degree of faith at all. Those selfish and
worldly designs which parents form in relation to their
children in holy orders, to their benefices, and their
talents, are in some the effect of the extinction of
their faith, in others the cause and beginning of this
extinction. Lord, vouchsafe to put a stop to the
torrent of this carnal love in parents. Thou seest
how thy church is almost overwhelmed with it.

" 6. Then Jesus said unto them, My time is not
yet come : but your time is alway ready."

We must be extremely careful not to anticipate
God's appointed time, especially in undertaking the
more eminent and remarkable actions. The world,
which has no other rule of acting but its own will, is
always ready to act: the Christian, who is desirous

306 ST. JOHN. •

to perform the will of God, waits till he is pleased to
make it known to him, and then makes it the spring
of all his motions. A man is as ready to ruin him-
self as he is to act, when the forwardness and activity
of his will does not proceed from the sovereign will
of God. It is the part of man to be attentive to the
will of God; because it belongs to God to prepare
the will of man. This is a state of dependency in
which true liberty does consist ; as the contrary in-
dependency is real slavery. The more a man de-
sires to have the government and direction of his own
will, the more is he a slave thereto. The time of
Jesus Christ is the time of his sacrifice ; because to
offer that was the very end for which he was sent, and
the chief object of his desires. It is in a very dif-
ferent sense, and from a quite contrary disposition,
that the sinner — never willing to sacrifice himself,
never willing to die — says continually to himself,
" My time is not yet come."

" 7. The world cannot hate you; but me it hat-
eth, because I testify of it, that the works thereof
are evil."

The hatred which the world bears against those
whose lives are a reproach to it, will last as long as
the world. It is a great misfortune to have nothing
which deserves this hatred ; but, alas ! there are few
who are not well satisfied under this misfortune. An
unfaithful pastor, who leaves sinners in the quiet en-
joyment of a false peace of conscience, applauds him-
self perhaps for carrying it fair with all sorts of
people ; whereas this peaceable way of living, in
neither condemning the world, nor being condemned
by it, is no other than his own condemnation and

CHAPTER VII. 30?

death. A pastor is the vicegerent of Christ, to re-
prove the evil works of the world. He deceives him-
self, if he pretend either to do his duty without re-
proving it, or to reprove it without being hated by it.
Jesus Christ himself did not think fit to reconcile
these two things.

" 8. Go ye up unto this feast : I go not up yet
unto this feast ; for my time is not yet full come.
9. When he had said these words unto them, he
abode still in Galilee."

How admirable, how edifying is this faithfulness
of Christ, in observing so exactly all the times and
seasons appointed by his Father ! The disciples of
Jesus Christ, namely, all true Christians, go to the
festivals of the church, and celebrate them with dis-
positions very different from those of the world. We
should decline associating ourselves with such persons
as carry a worldly spirit along with them to the most
holy solemnities, and into the very sanctuary itself;
we should separate ourselves from promiscuous and
tumultuous conversations, and not turn holy days
into days of visiting, entertainment, and diversion,
amongst our worldly friends or relations. When a
man applies himself to the most exact and faithful
observance of the will of God, abiding in that place
where the order of his vocation requires his presence,
and in an easy and quiet expectation of the feast :
then it is that he imitates Christ and his religion.

Sect. II. — Christ neither teaches his own Doctri?ie,
nor seeks his ow?i Glory,

"10. f But when his brethren were gone up,
then went he also up unto the feast, not openly, but
as it were in secret."

308 ST. JOHN.

Christ acts in this manner, that he may avoid
making a noise ; that he may not provoke the envious
by a crowd of relations eager to show him to the
world, and ambitious to raise his reputation ; and
that he may teach the great not to affect to distin-
guish themselves at church by a great train of at-
tendants, but to keep within the rules of modesty,
and to avoid every thing which may disturb either
their own devotion or that of others.

" 1 1. Then the Jews sought him at the feast, and
said, Where is he?"

How many are there in the world who seek Jesus
Christ on the greatest festivals, only to crucify him
by sacrilegious confessions and communions ! It is
generally during these great solemnities, that the se-
cret enemies of Christ distinguish themselves from
his true disciples; those who have faith from those
who have none; and who, for want thereof, cannot
find him present, and therefore say, " Where is
he ?" He hides and conceals himself from those
who do not seek him as they ought.

" 12. And there was much murmuring among the
people concerning him : for some said, He is a good
man : others said, Nay ; but he deceiveth the people.
13. Howbeit no man spake openly of him for fear of
the Jews."

Christ will be always thus exposed to the contra-
diction of men, even to the end of the world. Let
us observe with wonder, how blind the judgment of
the world is to which Christ is exposed ! We show
ourselves to be really Christians, when, in serving
God, we are very willing to be treated as our divine
Head was. The chief freedom which men have in

CHAPTER VII. 309

the world, is to speak ill of Jesus Christ and his re-
ligion. What esteem then ought we to have for
the world ? That which Christ suffered in his own
person from the Jews during the time of his life, he
now suffers in his church, his truth, and his servants,
at the hands of infidels and heretics, and frequently
of wicked livers among the orthodox. A profligate
person generally finds some protection, and some
persons to speak in his favour; whereas a good man is
abandoned, and nobody dares open his mouth in his
behalf. The reason is, because the worldly man is
more faithful to the world than Christians are to
Jesus Christ. How desirable is it to be thus aban-
doned, since it gives us so great a conformity with
our Head, and secures the protection of God in the
day of his wrath !

" 14. % Now, about the midst of the feast, Jesus
went up into the temple, and taught."

The time is now at length come, the moment ap-
pointed by the Father, for which Christ waited, in
order to declare himself to the priests, and to manifest
himself for the first time in the temple of God, as the
publisher of the new law, and the expected Messias.
Here are several instructions for a preacher who is
rightly and duly called to that office. First, He
ought to avoid all eagerness and forwardness to
preach, after the example of the Son of God, who
lets half the octave of the feast be past before he be-
gins. Second, He must not exercise so holy a func-
tion at the instance of his relations, or upon motives
of flesh and blood. Third, He must not make the first
day of his preaching a mere festival among relations.
Fourth. He should imitate Christ, who sets apart as

310 ST. JOHN.

much time for prayer as for preaching, and prays four
days in order to preach as many. Fifth, He must
not, under pretence of preparing himself to preach,
excuse himself from keeping the festivals in a Chris-
tian manner. Sixth, His sermons must be instruc-
tions, and not declamations ; he must teach, and not
trifle away time in displaying fine thoughts, or play-
ing upon words.

" 15. And the Jews marvelled, saying, How
knoweth this man letters,* having never learned ?"
[Fr. The Scripture.]

Seventh, It is necessary that a preacher should
have laid in beforehand a large stock of knowledge as
to the truths of religion, by the study of the Scrip-
tures. Eighth, He must likewise learn them other-
wise than by study. The unction of the Spirit is a
great master in this science, and it is by prayer that
we become his scholars. Much prayer and little
study advance the work of God more than abundance
of study without prayer. An ordinary degree of
knowledge in the Scriptures may be sufficient for
others; but, in the sacred ministers of the divine word,
this knowledge ought to be so great as to cause ad-
miration.

" 16. Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine
is not mine, but his that sent me."

Ninth, A preacher, following the example of Christ,
must not preach his own doctrine ; he must impart
to others nothing but what he receives, nothing but
what he can refer to God as the author of it. The
ministers of the word are not sufficiently sensible of
the great dependence which they have upon Christ.
If we consider only the common track in which the

CHAPTER VII. 311

generality of them proceed, we may be apt to ima-
gine that their office is merely arbitrary, to be per-
formed as they themselves shall think fit; but if we
consider the conduct of Christ, who is the model
and example they are to follow, we find every thing
prescribed and pointed out. A preacher, who lays
aside the truths and thoughts of God, to pursue and
utter his own, is like an ambassador who suppresses
the orders and instructions of his prince, and substi-
tutes in their stead his own designs, and the imagi-
nations of his own heart. The mission of the clergy
is the rule of their function ; and that comes to them
from God by Jesus Christ. And therefore God in
Jesus Christ ought to be the principle, the pattern,
and the end of all the rest.

" 17. If any man will do his will, he shall know
of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether
I speak of myself."

Tenth, A man ought to preach in such a manner,
that those who are really the servants of God, and
can relish and discern his word, may know it to be
so in the mouth of the preacher. It is of very great
importance to hear or read the word of God with
a heart which truly and earnestly seeks him. His
light discovers itself to those who are willing to fol-
low it; but it seems obscure to those whose heart is
darkened by the clouds of a bad intention, or of a
wicked life. Lord, let thy love inflame my will,
that my understanding may not meet with darkness
in the midst of thy light.

M 18. He that speaketh of himself seeketh his
own glory : but he that seeketh his glory that sent

312 ST. JOHN.

him, the same is true, and no unrighteousness is in
him."

Eleventh, A preacher must not seek his own
glory, but he must seek only that of God. It is
pride, and the love of their own glory, which make
false prophets, who, speaking and coming of them-
selves, pretend that God has sent them. Humility,
and the declining every thing which may raise and
heighten a man's character, is one mark of a divine
mission. To preach and teach the inventions of
our own mind, and attribute them to the Spirit of
God, is no other than vanity, hypocrisy, unrighteous-
ness, and imposture.

" 19. Did not Moses give you the law, and yet
none of you keepeth the law?"

Twelfth, A preacher must not be discouraged at
the hardness of sinners' hearts. The word of God,
in the mouth even of Moses himself, was barren and
unfruitful. It is the minister's part to sow the seed
of his word ; but it belongs to God to cause it to
bring forth fruit. God frequently suffers a holy
preacher to wait a long time without seeing the fruit
of his instructions, on purpose to let him know, that
he ought not to boast of the success of his discourses,
to oblige him to pray very much, and to humble
himself for his failings, which perhaps are the ob-
stacle, and to make him sensible how much he stands
in need of grace. For the law, without grace,
causes us only to prevaricate, because it does not
give us the principle of love.

« — Why go ye about to kill me?"

Thirteenth, A preacher ought not, through fear

CHAPTER VII. 313

either of ill usage or of death itself, to dissemble
such truths as are necessary, be they ever so dis-
agreeable to sinners. He who is called to the minis-
try of the word, is called to suffer the contradictions
of the world, and to seal with his own blood, if occa-
sion require, both the truth which he preaches, and
his own fidelity in preaching it. Why ? Lord, thou
hast just now informed us. It is because none of
us keepeth the law, because the whole world is cor-
rupted, and because we have need of such a victim
as may redeem us, sanctify us, and merit for us that
grace which enables us to keep the law.

" 20. The people answered and said, Thou hast
a devil: who goeth about to kill thee?"

Fourteenth, A preacher must not expect to see
himself justified before the world. The most mo-
dest complaint is, in the world's opinion, a new
crime. Every man is a liar, and yet no one can bear
to have the lie given him without demanding satis-
faction : what pride is this ! Christ is truth itself,
and yet suffers the imputation of being possessed with
the spirit of lying, error, and calumny, and even with
the devil himself, without seeming to take the least
notice of it : what humility is this ! A soft com-
plaint, which proceeds no further, which makes no
severe reply, nor returns any injurious reflection, is
much more edifying than a silence which may be
attributed to ignorance, insensibility, fear, or to an
excess of wrath and passion.

" 21. Jesus answered and said unto them, I have
done one work, and ye all marvel. 22. Moses
therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because

Vol. III. O 57

314 ST. JOHN.

it is of Moses, but of the fathers;) and ye on the
sabbath-day circumcise a man."

Fifteenth, A preacher ought to slight and disre-
gard personal affronts and injuries, but never to de-
sert the cause of God. To maintain the doctrine
of truth, and to vindicate those works which God
does in confirmation thereof, are two duties which
are inseparable. Christ omits nothing to acquit
himself of both. After that sublime apology for the
pretended violation of the Sabbath, recorded in chap.
v. ver. 17. he here makes use of one better suited to
vulgar capacities, that he may become all things to
all men. As a Christian, a man may patiently suffer
an act of injustice ; but as a minister of God, he
ought, by discovering it, to hinder it from being pre-
judicial to the work of God, or hurtful to his neigh-
bour.

" 23. If a man on the sabbath-day receive cir-
cumcision, that the law of Moses should not be
broken ; are ye angry at me, because I have made a
man every whit whole on the sabbath-day ?"

By performing good works, we sanctify festivals ;
so far are we from violating and profaning them
thereby. And if to inflict a bleeding wound be
esteemed a good work, how much more is it such to
make a man every whit whole by one single word ?
Envy blinds men, and causes them to condemn in
others that which they do themselves. Anger, envy,
rash judgment, parricide conceived in the heart
against the Son of God, and a spirit of opposition to
the divine works — all this is allowable on festivals, if
these men are to be believed ; but to give assistance
to a neighbour, overturns and destroys all religion.

CHAPTER VII. 315

A way of reasoning this, which we too often meet
with in the conduct not only of Christians, but of
priests.

" 24. Judge not according to the appearance, but
judge righteous judgment. "

Man, who sees not the heart, ought to be very
cautious in judging his brother. How much cause
have we to fear, lest, in our judgments concerning
others, we should be influenced, either by the ad-
vantages of nature and fortune, or by our own pre-
judices or interests, and at the same time imagine
that we proceed upon just grounds and reasons ! It
is not the action in itself, or the external part of it,
which is pleasing or displeasing to God, innocent or
criminal : to judge rightly of it, we should know the
principle from which it proceeds, the end at which it
aims, all the circumstances attending it, and the true
frame and temper of the will. It is unjust to form
our judgments upon the outward appearance of any
action, or by the love or hatred we bear towards the
person who has done it. To judge uprightly and
justly, we must love justice : and since our love for
it is but small, let us never judge but when it is ab-
solutely necessary, and let us then do it with fear
and caution.

"25. Then said some of them of Jerusalem, Is
not this he whom they seek to kill? 26. But, lo,
he speaketh boldly, and they say nothing unto him.
Do the rulers know indeed that this is the very
Christ?"

The tongues and ill-will of men are always sub-
ject to the power of God. This is matter of great
consolation to those whom they persecute. He

o 2

316 ST, JOHN.

watches continually over his faithful ministers, who,
without disquieting themselves about the designs of
the wicked against them, are intent on performing
their duty. To neglect it through fear of temporal
evils, is to choose rather to expose ourselves to the
wrath of God, than to the displeasure of men.

" 27. Howbeit we know this man whence he is :
but when Christ cometh, no man knoweth whence
he is."

It belongs to God to give the true understanding
of his own Scriptures; otherwise human reason does
but make every thing in them more intricate. The
senses which see nothing but external and corporeal
objects, are very bad guides to lead us to the belief
of invisible and supernatural mysteries. That which
is here said by these Jews of Jerusalem, gives us a
lively representation of the boldness and confidence
with which carnal men, by their own private spirit,
frequently determine the sense of Scripture. It
often happens, that men think themselves very know-
ing in the Scriptures and in the ways of God, when
they are really as blind in respect of them as these
very Jews.

" 28. Then cried Jesus in the temple, as he
taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know
whence I am : and I am not come of myself, but he
that sent me is true, whom ye know not."

Lastly, A preacher must not give over instructing
those whom God has committed to his care, let the
world say and do what it will to the contrary.
Christ raises his voice, on purpose to teach his minis-
ters, that it is a dishonour to divine truth to preach
it in a timorous manner. His Father who sent him

CHAPTER VII. 317

is true, 1. Because he is the source and origin of
the eternal and subsisting truth, and as such sent
him by the incarnation. 2. Because he thereby
made good the truth of his promises. 3. Because
he gives testimony to the truth of the incarnation of
the Word by miracles, which are the seal of his
divine mission.

" 29. But I know him : for I am from* him, and
Jie hath sent me." [* Fr. Born of.]

The Word receives by his generation his know-
ledge of his Father, in receiving his nature. He
does not know him by a simple manner of existing,
or by means of ideas distinguished from himself;
but because, as being his Son, he is the subsisting
term of his Father's knowledge, the eternal char-
acter, and substantial idea of his essence, and of all
his divine and eternal perfections. Let us adore the
three mysteries, couched under the three different
expressions used in this verse: his eternal birth; the
manner of his birth, which is by knowledge; and his
temporal birth and mission.

" 30, % Then they sought to take him : but no
man laid hands on him, because his hour was not yet
come."

Christ delivered up himself when it was his will
to do it; but to determine that, he waited with sub-
mission till the hour of his sacrifice came, which had
been appointed by his Father. We are in the hand
of God, both as we are his creatures, and as we are
the members of his Son. Nothing can happen to us
but what is permitted by this omnipotent hand.
We sometimes, as it were, take ourselves out of his
hand, by seeking protection elsewhere, and putting

318 ST. JOHN.

our trust and confidence in precautions altogether
human, and directly contrary to that fidelity which
we owe him. We equally take ourselves out of his
hand, when we either rashly advance without his
orders and direction, or shamefully retreat through
fear contrary to his law.

"31. And many of the people believed on him,
and said, When Christ cometh, will he do more mira-
cles than these which this man hath done ?"

God chooses the poor of this world, to make
them rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom, (James
ii. 5.) rather than the great and the learned. Hu-
mility and simplicity open the mind and heart to
divine truths; whereas pride and arrogance of mind
shut it up against all manner of proofs, and harden
the heart against them. All the learning and
subtlety of the scribes and doctors of the law, does
not come up to this plain and conclusive argument:
miracles are necessary, and withal sufficient to autho-
rize the mission of a prophet : those which, according
to the Scriptures, are to authorize the Messias, can
be neither greater, nor more in number, than those
of Jesus : therefore, Jesus is the Messias, since in
working such miracles he plainly declares and proves
himself to be so.

" 32. % The Pharisees heard that the people
murmured such things concerning him ; and the
Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take
him."

All the attempts of men against the will of God
are vain and ineffectual. No confederacies in the
world, let them be ever so strong and powerful, can
oppose his designs, or break his measures. It is a

CHAPTER VII. 319

very great temptation, to see the most sacred autho-
rity, and the most holy and edifying profession,
united in a conspiracy against Christ and doctrine.
That which was here done against him, is done
sometimes against his truth and his servants. It is
still a far more dangerous temptation to the wicked,
to behold, in them they persecute, miracles only of
meekness, virtue, and charity; and to see no instance
of vengeance and justice, nor any thing which may
raise in them a dread and apprehension of punish-
ment.

" 33. Then said Jesus unto them, Yet a little
while am I with you, and then I go unto him that
sent me."

Those who neglect to receive Jesus Christ, are at
length deprived of the opportunity. The time of
grace is short; it is an extreme folly not to know
how to improve it. Death, in respect of the righ-
teous, is no other than a return to their father's
house; and this return will quickly be. It is the
comfort of the righteous under oppression, that they
expect every moment to be called home, where they
will be for ever placed beyond the reach of the wicked.
The short term of this present life passes still more
swiftly, with respect to those who enjoy every thing
here below according to their heart's desire. True
wisdom consists in regarding as nothing whatever
passes away so soon, be it either good or evil.

"34. Ye shall seek me, and shall not find me:
and where I am, thither ye cannot come."

It is absolutely necessary to seek God in this life
by a true conversion, and by good works, in order to
find him at the time of death. What will he, who

320 ST. JOHN.

finds not Jesus Christ at that hour, find, except his
own condemnation, despair, and eternal misery? A
terrible judgment this upon the wicked whom God
leaves in their infidelity. Blessed be thy name, O
Jesus, who hast showed us mercy in giving us faith.
Grant, Lord, that this faith, which thou hast planted
in my heart, may continually seek thee, find thee,
raise my heart up to thee, unite it to thy Spirit, and
at last conduct me where thou art.

" 35. Then said the Jews among themselves,
Whither will he go, that we shall not find him ? will
he go unto the dispersed among the Gentiles, and
teach the Gentiles ? 36. What manner of saying is
this that he said, Ye shall seek me, and shall not
find me? and where I am, thither ye cannot come?"

The reprobate, insensible both to admonitions and
threatenings, make only a jest of them. Without
the precious gift of faith, men see nothing but ab-
surdities in the mysteries of religion, and in the most
sacred words of Scripture. It concerns us very
highly to avoid the company of those who ridicule
that which ought to make them tremble. How
strong soever we may think ourselves, we have still
reason to fear lest we should be influenced by a re-
gard to men, and that we are not sufficiently settled
in the truths of faith, for fear of being reputed en-
thusiastical by a libertine, or a person who has none.

Sect. III. — Whoever thirsts let him come to Christ.
Rivers of living water. Christ the occasion of
division.

" 37. In the last day, that great day of the feast,
Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let
him come unto me, and drink."

CHAPTER VII. 321

In order to come to Christ, a man must have a
thirst after grace and eternal life. But it is he who
gives this thirst; it is he himself who draws those
after him who come unto him. This thirst is incon-
sistent with a thirst after honours, riches, pleasures,
and the amusements of the world. In vain do we
seek among the creatures for something to satisfy
our desires, and to allay our thirst. Our drought
continually increases, so long as we do not seek Jesus
Christ. It is not sufficient that we are sensible how
much we stand in need of Christ ; we must go to him
by faith, we must drink the wholesome waters of his
grace, and we must draw them even from our blessed
Saviour's fountains, from his mysteries, his cross, his
sacred wounds, &c. The larger and deeper the
vessel of our faith is, the greater quantity shall we
receive and bring away of this water which sanctifies
and makes us fruitful.

" 38. He that believeth on me, as the scripture
hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living
water."

He who has the Spirit of God, and a lively and
obedient faith, has within his heart continual springs
of graces, good works, and blessings, sufficient to
water the whole earth. If the marks and charac-
ters of faith are not seen in our life and actions, it is
undoubtedly either because there is no faith at all in
our hearts, or because it is either quite dead or in a
very declining condition. The water of faith is not
a standing water, but a living water which runs per-
petually. My God, vouchsafe to bless thy church,
by sending it those men of faith, full of thy Spirit,
whose hearts may overflow like rivers, and bring a

o 3

322 ST. JOHN.

fruitful inundation upon thy field by their labours,
prayers, instructions, and good examples.

" 39. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they
that believe on him should receive: for the Holy
Ghost was not yet given ; because that Jesus was not
yet glorified.)"

The gift of the Holy Ghost is the fruit of all the
mysteries of Jesus Christ. The bishop alone gives
it in confirmation, because he alone represents Christ
in the fulness of his glory, in the sovereignty of his
power, and in the perfection of his priesthood. It
was requisite that our adorable Head, the principle
and pattern of our new life, should receive it himself,
before he communicated it to his members: that he
should be regenerated by his resurrection, before he
sent the Spirit of the Christian regeneration; that he
should be entirely separated from this present world,
before he became, by means of his Spirit, the Father
of the world to come ; that whatever remained in his
body of the image and resemblance of the first Adam,
should be swallowed up in glory before he became,
in quality of the second Adam, the new principle of
a divine and heavenly life; and that his sacrifice
should be completed by the resurrection, (which puts
the victim of God into a condition fit to be received
into his bosom,) before his church and members could
partake of this sacrifice, by receiving the Holy Spirit
which is the fruit thereof; and that even with respect
to those who received him before the incarnation, by
an anticipated spiritual communion, as also in respect
of the sacramental communion of the apostles, which
preceded the immolation of the victim.

" 40. % Many of the people therefore, when they

CHAPTER VII. 323

heard this saying, said, Of a truth this is the Pro-
phet. 41. Others said, This is the Christ. "

If the bare promise of the gift of faith, of the ef-
fects thereof, and of the effusion of the Holy Ghost,
drew from the mouth of these people this confession ;
how blind is the heart of unbelievers in our days,
after his promises have been so manifestly accom-
plished, after the effusion of the gifts of the Holy
Ghost continued in so incontestable a manner, with-
out intermission, for seventeen ages, and after the
conversion and faith of all nations, which is so plain
and convincing a proof of that effusion ! Let us like-
wise take care, lest our faith have some degree of
distrust, lest it be too timorous or faint-hearted.

" — But some said, Shall Christ come out of
Galilee? 42. Hath not the Scripture said, That
Christ cometh of the seed of David, and out of the
town of Bethlehem, where David was?"

How great assistance does the implicit, but ra-
tional obedience of faith afford ! How many false
reflections, unprofitable inquiries, and vain disputes
does it prevent ! The difficulties and seeming con-
tradictions of some places of Scripture, ought to be
no obstacle to the belief of such truths as are else-
where sufficiently attested, both by the Scriptures
themselves and by miracles. God, in his adorable
wisdom, dispenses the sacred light and darkness of
his word together, to hide from the profane those
truths of which they are utterly unworthy, to exer-
cise the faith of his true disciples, and thereby cause
them, in some measure, to deserve the understanding
of them. Pride and irreligion meet with darkness
in the midst of light; humility and religion arrive at
the light even by the means of darkness itself.

324 ST. JOHN.

" 43. So there was a division among the people
because of him."

Jesus Christ and his doctrine will ever be, through
the malice of men, an occasion of division in the church.
We ought to prepare ourselves for this misfortune,
and not be at all scandalized or offended at it. There
are some divisions which are necessary. That per-
son betrays and abandons the truth, who ceases to de-
fend it, or to oppose the professed adversaries thereof,
either for fear of giving occasion of scandal, or through
a false love of peace. Truth is the patrimony of the
widow and the orphan, of the church and the Chris-
tian ; we surrender and deliver up this patrimony,
whenever we suffer it to be either taken away, or
wasted by any unnatural relation, under pretence of
avoiding suits at law, and of preserving peace and
good understanding in the family.

" 44. And some of them would have taken him ;
but no man laid hands on him."

Happy is that person who is in the hands of God !
those of the world have no power over him. The
ill-will of men is less to be feared by us than our
own will. The former serves only to engage God
more and more on our side, provided our own per-
verse will do not make us his enemies. The wicked
are the scourges and instruments of God's justice :
if he permit their ill-will to be in action, it is either
to punish sinners, or to exercise the righteous, and
increase their virtue.

Sect. IV. — Those who believe in Christ called ac-
cursed. Nicodemus vindicates him.

" 45. f Then came the officers to the chief priests

CHAPTER VH. 325

and Pharisees ; and they said unto them, Why have
ye not brought him ? 46. The officers answered,
Never man spake like this man."

How many rude and ignorant people, who submis-
sively receive the word of Christ, will rise up in judg-
ment against the wits, against the learned men of the
age, and against the great persons of the world !
They who execute unjust orders merely on the ac-
count of their office, and without knowing the injus-
tice of them, are not at so great a distance from sal-
vation as those, who, to satisfy their passions, either
give such orders themselves, or cause them to be
given by others. God gives what efficacy he pleases
to his word. Whenever he vouchsafes to open the
heart, be the light of the understanding ever so
small and inconsiderable, we then see the beauty of
his word, we taste its sweetness, and we feel and ad-
mire its power. But whenever he permits the heart
to be closed against it, even the light of nature be-
comes an obstacle to our understanding and embrac-
ing it, and we perceive nothing therein which is more
than human.

" 47. Then answered them the Pharisees, Are
ye also deceived ?"

So corrupt is the world, that it hates those who
will not join with it in the persecution of good men.
Whoever desires to be the servant of God, and to
continue faithful to him, must contemn not only the
judgment of the world, but sometimes even that of
those who pass for the great masters and examples of
piety. No man is willing to be thought seduced ;
and this is frequently the very thing which causes us
to fall into seduction : we dread the shadow and name

326 ST. JOHN.

of error, and we receive and embrace the real sub-
stance.

" 48. Have any of the rulers, or of the Pharisees,
believed on him ?"

Worldly greatness and false devotion are more
likely to make us lose the true faith, than to assist us
in obtaining it. That person has already a very
wrong notion of the spirit of faith, who imagines that
external quality is of any advantage to it. If Christ
have but few followers and true disciples among the
great, the reason is, because human grandeur agrees
but ill with the humility of his gospel. And those
who are puffed up with the reputation of their learn-
ing, and an outward show of piety, are still less dis-
posed to admit into their heart the simplicity of his
word.

" 49. But this people, who knoweth not the law,
are cursed."

The pride of men is so great, that they choose
rather to be eternally lost with the great, than to be
saved with the poor and simple. The poverty and
simplicity of the elect is a matter of scandal and of-
fence to the reprobate. The vain-glory manifested
in these words, is sufficient to satisfy us, that, with
regard to salvation, it is much better to lie obscure
and concealed amidst the crowd of a believing popu-
lace, than to be distinguished by great talents, and
by any excellency which is apt to fill the mind with
pride. It is not the bare knowledge, but the spirit
of the law, which leads to him who is the end thereof.
We have then the true knowledge of it, when we
have the love of it in our hearts, and manifest our
obedience by showing the works of it in our lives.

CHAPTER VII. 327

The curse of the law falls on all those who have
nothing but the letter of it.

" 50. Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came
to Jesus by night, being one of them,)''

The courage of Nicodemus is the effect of the
conversation which he had with Christ. The word
of the Son of God gives a man zeal and resolution to
do good. He has disciples in all states and profes-
sions of life, because he has every where an absolute
power over the heart. He finds means to have wit-
nesses of the truth, and defenders of innocence, in
the most corrupt societies; because he himself forms
those witnesses and defenders by his grace. There
sometimes wants but one such person to reclaim, or
at least restrain all the rest; but it is extremely dif-
ficult for a man to resolve to be that one person.

" 51. Doth our law judge any man before it hear
him, and know what he doeth ?"

All sorts of laws are violated in respect of Christ :
this is matter of comfort and consolation to those who
meet with the same treatment for his sake. It is a
rule of natural equity, as well as of the written law,
which is of great importance, and of use to every
body, That we must not condemn any one, either in
conversation, or in our own thoughts, (where every
one presumes to judge his neighbour,) without know-
ing the case. Much less ought persons in authority
to punish or condemn the accused, either by juridical
sentence, or by arbitrary proceedings, without hear-
ing them, and giving them means and opportunity to
defend themselves. Let us never imitate these great
pretenders to zeal for the law, who are the first who
violate it themselves.

328 ST. JOHN.

" 52. They answered and said unto him, Art thou
also of Galilee ? Search, and look : for out of Galilee
ariseth no prophet. 53. And every man went unto
his own house."

If we would not be deceived, we must never expect
to meet with a good reception from the world, when
we take the part of truth and justice against powerful
and passionate men. Envy convicted, and put to a
nonplus, is strangely at a loss. Nothing comes amiss
to it, so Christ be but looked upon as a false prophet.
It is the usual way with the enemies of his doctrine,
to endeavour to draw the defenders of it off from the
question, that they may hide their own confusion,
and avoid yielding to the truth.

CHAPTER VIII.

Sect. I. — The Woman taken in Adultery.

" 1. Jesus went unto the mount of Olives. 2.
And early in the morning he came again into the
temple, and all the people came unto him; and he
sat down, and taught them."

In the heat of persecution, or evangelical labour, it
is necessary to have frequent recourse to retirement
and prayer, in order to receive new strength, and then
return to the combat and to the sacred functions.
Neither danger, nor hardness of heart in the flock,
ought to discourage a pastor from labouring in the
work of God. On the contrary, these are motives to
him to redouble his care, his prayers, and his applica-
tion. He who has his mission at heart, finds the
repose of the night too long, as our blessed Lord did.

CHAPTER VIII. 329

The sheep answer the pastor's zeal. We always
find the people very forward and eager to hear the
word of Christ, while it was despised by the rich,
censured by the learned, and persecuted by the priests
and the Pharisees.

" 3. And the scribes and Pharisees brought unto
him a woman taken in adultery: and when they had
set her in the midst, 4. They say unto him, Mas-
ter, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very
act."

It is a double impiety to divert the Son of God
from the sacred functions of his ministry, and to do it
with a design to destroy him. Envy and rage never
want new contrivances to ruin the ministers of God :
the dsvil takes care to suggest them to the mind, and
to furnish his agents with them. He does his work
by their hands, in seeking the death of sinners ; while
Jesus carries on his, in labouring to save them.

" 5. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that
such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?"

Ye hypocrites, if the law commands it, why do you
question it ? And if it does not, why do you say
so? It happens very frequently, as it did in the
case before us, that men make no difficulty of acting
directly contrary to the spirit and design of the law,
under pretence of a more than ordinary exactness in
observing it. To make it subservient to our pas-
sions, is to violate the whole law together. This
woman had transgressed only one commandment ; but
these great pretenders to zeal transgress and subvert
the very foundation of the whole, namely, the spirit
of charity, mildnefis, and justice.

" 6. This they said, tempting him, that they might

330 ST. JOHN.

have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and
with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he
heard them not."

There is nothing which hypocritical and corrupt
zealots will not put in practice, and value themselves
upon. Under pretence of discovering an impostor, of
surprising him in his discourse, of exposing his dan-
gerous maxims, and of finding matter to convict him,
they forbear no kind of deceit, artifice, and treach-
ery. Jesus acts a quite contrary part, in giving them
time by his silence to recollect and recover themselves.
He stoops down, to avoid adding to the shame and
confusion of the adulteress by his looking upon her,
whilst her merciless accusers expose her to the public
view of the people.

" 7. So, when they continued asking him, he lifted
up himself, and said unto them, He that is without
sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her."

An answer full of wisdom, which confounds the
devices of these wicked men, without any violation of
truth, charity, gentleness, or justice. We are not
always obliged to answer those who have a design to
ensnare us. We may evade it by some innocent
artifice : and such is never wanting when we keep our
hearts open to the Spirit of God. Let those whose
duty it is to punish offenders, take great care that
they be not moved thereto by passion, hypocrisy,
false zeal, or ill-will; but let them do it with reluc-
tancy, and a deep sense of their own sins and miseries,
which perhaps render them more guilty in the sight
of God.

" 8. And again he stooped down, and wrote ou
the ground."

CHAPTER VIII. 331

Since Jesus Christ, 1. never writ but once in his
whole life; 2. since he did it only in the dust; 3.
since it was only to avoid condemning a sinner ;
and, 4. since he would not have that which he
wrote so much as known : let men learn from hence
never to write but when it is necessary or useful, to
do it with humility and modesty, upon a principle of
charity, and not out of malice. Christ writes his
divine thoughts on the ground ; and we would will-
ingly have ours written upon cedar, and engraved
upon brass.

" 9. And they which heard it, being convicted
by their own conscience, went out one by one, be-
ginning at the eldest, even unto the last : and Jesus
was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst."

Christ could have dispersed this crowd of accusers
by his authority and power, but he has a regard to
the law and to justice, the execution whereof they
eagerly pursued. Men ought to use their interest
in behalf of criminals with great prudence and cau-
tion, and that more in persuading the accusers to
desist from their prosecutions, than in diverting the
judges from their duty, which they have no power
to neglect. It is both prudent and charitable to
give persons an opportunity to extricate'themselves,
without noise and confusion, out of a business wherein
they have rashly engaged themselves through pas-
sion. To provoke and shame them publicly, does
but engage them in it more deeply. Happy is that
misery which finds itself left alone with mercy !

" 10. When Jesus had lifted up himself, and saw
none but the woman, he said unto her, Woman,
where are those thine accusers ? hath no man con-
demned thee ?"

332 ST. JOHN.

Jesus lifts up himself victorious and triumphant
over his enemies by his silence and gentleness. There
are some occasions wherein these two, joined with
humility and prayer, are more effectual than any other
means whatever. When men have only a false zeal
for justice, it immediately vanishes when self-interest
makes them apprehend that their own persons are in
danger. Nothing is a more proper remedy to cure
us of that itching desire which we have to accuse
and condemn others, than to place our own sins be-
fore our eyes, and to consider how obnoxious we are
to the divine justice.

" ] 1. She said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said
unto her, Neither do I condemn thee : go, and sin
no more."

It ill becomes the ministers of reconciliation, and
the dispensers of the mercy of God, to appear in
criminal prosecutions, and to solicit the condemna-
tion of sinners, when Christ has given them such an
example to the contrary. It is more suitable to
their ministry to use all their endeavours to gain
them time, that they may be converted, and punish
themselves by a true repentance. When we have
once recovered any person out of the hands of jus-
tice, to prevent this grace and favour from being
prejudicial to him, we must apply ourselves to him,
in order to prevail with him to make a good use
thereof, by renouncing sin, and leading a Christian
life. Christ does not condemn this woman ; but
then he does not meddle with the law which did
condemn her ; to teach his ministers to pay a due
regard to those laws, from the severity of which they
endeavour to save some guilty persons. He is on

CHAPTER VIII. 333

all occasions mild and merciful ; on all occasions pru-
dent, just, and equitable.

Sect. II. — Christ is the Light of the World. His
Father bears witness of him. The impenitency
of the Jews.

"12. 51 Then spake Jesus again unto them, say-
ing, I am the light of the world : he that followeth
me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the
light of life."

Every person ought to say to himself, There are
but two ways, one of which is certainly mine: the
first is the way of light, which leads to life; the se-
cond is the way of darkness, which leads to death.
The latter is the life wherein men follow their pas-
sions, a life which is nothing but wandering, dark-
ness, and death, both in itself and in its conse-
quences. The former is the Christian life, of which
Jesus Christ is himself the way, the light, and the
life. The way — by the merits of his sacrifice, and
by the dignity of the mysteries of his life, and of his
death upon the cross, which comprehend all his ac-
tions, privations, and sufferings. The light — by the
truth of his word, which contains his saving instruc-
tions, his edifying virtues, and his internal disposi-
tions. The life — by the holiness of his Spirit, from
which fountain is derived the infusion of his love,
the operation of his grace, and the communication
of his glory. How great comfort must it needs be
to one who sincerely desires to be saved, to find thus
in Jesus Christ whatever is necessary to salvation !
But how dreadful is it, not to follow this only light,
and to choose rather to follow the darkness of our
own passions !

334. ST. JOHN.

" 13. The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou
bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true."

Nothing shows more plainly that men walk still
in darkness, than their disputing against the light.
Those who are resolved not to believe, forget even
miracles, and all the proofs which have been brought
in confirmation of the truth, and insist on every thing
which seems to oppose and contradict it. Obstinacy
and indocility are pharisaical vices, which gradually
shut the heart more and more against the light.

" 14. Jesus answered and said unto them, Though
I bear record of myself, yet my record is true : for
I know whence I came, and whither I go; but ye
cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go."

The light manifests itself by its own brightness
without any other assistance — but not to the blind.
And such they are, whose passions shut their eyes
against the truths of the Scripture, and against mi-
racles. An ambassador is believed upon his own
word, when it is once known from whence he comes,
and his credentials have been read ; but men cannot
read them unless they open their eyes. In like
manner, they must have the eyes of their mind free
from passion, in order to judge of the mission of
Jesus Christ by his miracles, which are his creden-
tials. Eternal thanks be rendered to thee, O Jesus,
for that thou hast vouchsafed to keep us from shutting
our eyes against the wonders of thy life, and the
miracles of thy power !

" 15. Ye judge after the flesh ; I judge no man."

No ambassador is more worthy to be received and
credited than he, who, offering magnificent promises
as conditions of an alliance or covenant, confirms

CHAPTER VIII. 335

them by innumerable miracles, does good to all, con-
demns none, no, not even an adulteress taken in the
very act, and suffers himself to be judged and con-
demned by carnal men, who judge only by passion.
Irreligious persons generally consider nothing in di-
vine truths and mysteries, but that which appears
therein contrary to sense and shallow reason. It is
even because these truths come from God, that they
are therefore above the understanding of man.

" 16. And yet if I judge, my judgment is true :
for I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent
me."

Ambassadors are invested with the authority, but
not with the dignity and sovereignty of their princes:
but Jesus Christ, inseparable from his Father, and
one and the same God with him, can equally do all
things, is equally to be believed, and is as just and
righteous in all his judgments. Let us adore Jesus
Christ as the adorer, apostle, and preacher of the
most holy Trinity. We commonly pass over such
places of Scripture as this very slightly, and yet there
is nothing more holy, more sublime, and more worthy
to be adored, than that which is therein contained.
This is the mystery of Christians ; whatever is taught
us concerning it by Christ ought to be precious to
us, and requires our adoration, thanksgiving, atten-
tion, love, &c.

" 17. It is also written in your law, that the tes-
timony of two men is true. 18. I am one that bear
witness of myself, and the Father that sent me bear-
eth witness of me."

None but Jesus Christ can bear witness of him-
self. Man, who has nothing derived from himself

336 ST. JOHN.

but falsehood and sin, has more reason to suspect
himself than any other. Even Jesus Christ did not
bear witness of himself, until his Father had borne
witness of him by his Spirit at the time of his bap-
tism, and by his miracles; and until his own free-
dom from self-interest, his aversion to pride and
vanity, his meekness, charity, patience, &c. were be-
come publicly known. The testimony of good works
and Christian virtues is that with which his ministers
ought always to support their ministry.

" 19. Then said they unto him, Where is thy
Father ? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor
my Father : if ye had known me, ye should have
known my Father also."

A man may desire and ask for the knowledge of
God and of his mysteries, either by an humble and
hearty prayer, as Philip did, (chap. xiv. 8.) or by a
criminal way of inquiry, full of artifice and infidelity,
as the Pharisees here did, and as the learned men
of the world very often do. Nothing so clearly dis-
covers and makes known the goodness and love of
God towards mankind, as his giving them his Son;
and they, in rejecting the belief of this gift, show
plainly that they have no true notion of the sove-
reign goodness of the Father towards them. The
abusing the light of the holy Scriptures, and reject-
ing the miracles of Christ, which are the voice of
God, are punished with ignorance and darkness of
mind.

" 20. These words spake Jesus Ui the treasury,
as he taught in the temple : and no man laid hands
on him ; for his hour was not yet come."

At what advantage soever the wicked may have

CHAPTER VIII. 337

the good whom they intend to destroy, they cannot
make use of that advantage without the permission
and appointment of God. A man enjoys the greatest
peace of mind, when he has once settled himself in
a firm and steadfast belief of God's providence, and
an absolute dependence upon his designs and will.
This is that which gives an evangelical minister so
much freedom and boldness, whilst he considers no-
thing but his duty, and fears no other evil, but only
lest he should not faithfully discharge that duty in
all respects.

ec 21. Then said Jesus again unto them, I go
my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your
sins: whither I go, ye cannot come."

Have we not just reason to fear, when we see the
Jews abandoned to their obduracy ? That man alone
has no occasion to tremble at these words, who is
certain that he shall never have this disposition of
the Jews in any degree whatever. Here are four
dreadful truths which ought to be the cause of fear
to all, but of despair to none : — 1. That there are
some persons from whom God withdraws himself, in
leaving them to themselves. 2. That then they seek
God to no purpose, because they do not seek him as
they ought. 3. That they die in their sins. And,
4. That they shall be eternally separated from God.
— The only end and design of Christ in assuring us
that there are such persons, is, that we may earnestly
endeavour, by a sincere conversion and a true repen-
tance, not to be of the number. We never seek
Christ either too late, or to no purpose, when we
seek him with sincerity, humility, and a penitent
heart. He may be found indeed at the last mo-

Vol. III. P 57

338 ST. JOHN.

ment ; but who knows whether he shall be then in
a condition to seek him ? And who does not know
that it is by grace alone that we are enabled to do
it? — which grace is not due to any one, much less
to those who have so often contemned and despised it.
" 22. Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself?
because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come."

To what blasphemies are not men transported by
envy, by the spirit of contradiction, and by a contempt
of God's word ! Let us earnestly beg of God the
grace never to fall into any of these sins. The
righteous profit by God's admonitions, and even by
his threatenings to the wicked: but the wicked turn
to their own destruction the most wholesome warn-
ings which are more immediately directed to them.
They verify, by the hardness of their heart, that very
tbing which Christ has just now foretold. My God,
what is a heart which is not possessed and ruled by
thy Spirit !

" 23. And he said unto them, Ye are from be-
neath ; I am from above : ye are of this world ; I
am not of this world."

W7hat obduracy and perverseness soever a good
pastor finds in his flock, he is never discouraged.
The mysteries of the Trinity and the incarnation,
are such as these hardened wretches were most un-
worthy to know ; but then they are likewise such
as are most necessary: and this is what ought chiefly
to be regarded. Let us remember that we also are
from above, as members of this heavenly person by
our new birth. Let those who are of this world,
love the things of this world ; but let the Christian,
whose birth and spirit are from above, have no in-

CHAPTER VIII. 339

clinations but for the things above, and judge of every
thing only by the Spirit of heaven.

" 24. I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die
in your sins ; for if ye believe not that I am he, ye
shall die in your sins."

Let us seriously and attentively consider how dan-
gerous it is to reject Jesus Christ. Sinners ought
frequently to be told what it is to die in their sins,
and how much a state of final impenitence is to be
dreaded. It is a mistaken prudence to hide these
dreadful truths from sinners, for fear of casting them
into despair by the terror of God's judgments. We
ought, on the contrary, to force them, by the sight
of their danger, to throw themselves into the arms
of Chryt, the only refuge of sinners. How posi-
tive and severe soever these threatenings are, yet
Christ at the same time informs us, that our conver-
sion may hinder their being put in execution, and
that this conversion has for its foundation the belief
of a Saviour who is an almighty God, and a full
trust and confidence in his mercy.

Sect. III. — Christ does nothing of himself. The
truth makes men free. Abraham's children. The
children of the devil.

" 25. Then said they unto him, Who art thou?
And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I
said unto you from the beginning."

Jesus is the Son of God, the eternal Word, the
eternal principle and source of all things, and the
light of the world. Every thing in him proclaims
this, both his word and works; but envy shuts both
the eyes and ears of the Jews. He has one life

p2

340 ST. JOHN.

which never had a beginning, and which all the
attempts of his enemies cannot bring to an end.
Thou hast another, O Jesus, the loss of which is the
salvation of men. I adore thee in all thou art from
eternity, and in all thou didst begin to be for my
sake in time.

" 26. I have many things to say and to judge of
you: but he that sent me is true; and I speak to
the world those things which I have heard of him.
27. They understood not that he spake to them of
the Father."

Jesus Christ speaks nothing but what his Father
directs him to speak: his ministers, in like manner,
ought to preach nothing but what they have learned
of Jesus Christ. He teaches those who hive ears
to hear, that all the good things of eternity are con-
tained in his person : but he conceals from them the
evil which he saw in the heart of man. It is a
matter of great importance, for a man to be able to
imitate as he ought this moderation of the Son of
God, in publishing that which it is the part of charity
to make public, and in suppressing that which it re-
quires should be concealed. Truth, charity, fidelity,
is the motto of an embassador of God, of a minister
of the gospel. Let us adore God the Father, as
the fulness, source, and eternal origin of the eternal
truth ; and his adorable bosom, as the fountain of all
the truths of salvation. This is the school, as it
were, in which the Word himself (who was never
ignorant of them) learns them, in order to teach
them to mankind as their master.

" 28. Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have
lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I

CHAPTER VIII. 341

am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my
Father hath taught me, I speak these things."

How many Christians are there, who, in like man-
ner, do not know him until they have crucified him
by their sins ! How just cause of humiliation is
this ! As the bosom of the Father is the school of
the Son, where he learns all truth, in being himself
born therein as the subsisting truth: so the bosom
of the Son crucified in our flesh, is the school of
Christians, begotten on the cross, and adopted in
Jesus Christ crucified. We may here observe three
parts of the doctrine of this divine school: — The first
contains the mysteries of the Trinity and of the Son
of man, expressed by the term, " I am." The
second, denoted by the term, " I do," includes the
actions of Christ's life, and his death upon the cross.
The third, signified by the term, " I speak," com-
prehends his doctrine and maxims. The three fun-
damental points or tenets taught in this school are,
1. That Jesus Christ is perfect God, and perfect
man, in one single person. 2. That his actions are
divine, of an infinite merit and dignity. 3. That
his doctrine is truth itself, and the infallible rule of
our life and conversation. — O sublime and divine
schools, raised infinitely above human sense and un-
derstanding ! How much are ye neglected ! how
little are ye known in comparison of the schools of
the world ! Grant, O Jesus, that I may know no
other school but thine. Give me, I beseech thee,
the eyes of a lively faith, the ears of a teachable
heart, and the understanding of an attentive charity,
that I may be able to read in the book taught there,
which is thyself; to hear the master who teaches

34-2 ST. JOHN.

there, namely, thy Spirit ; and to comprehend the
lessons there given, which are truth and charity.

" 29. And he that sent me is with me : the Fa-
ther hath not left me alone ; for I do always those
things that please him."

Christ was pleased by his obedience to merit the
continual assistance and protection of his Father, as
likewise a state of glory, for his human nature, though
he had already a right to both by his hypostatical
union. Let us, after his example, be faithful to
God, and we shall always find him with us. One
man cannot send another without being separated
from him : God sends his Son, by uniting the human
nature to the divine in the person of the Word, by
a union, of all others, the most intimate and insepar-
able. The hierarchical mission honours and imitates
this divine mission, which is the source and pattern
thereof. It unites the subordinate minister to his
bishop, and by him to Jesus Christ; admits him to
a share of the priesthood, authority, grace, and spirit
of his bishop ; renders him an instrument entirely
one with the bishop in the sacerdotal operations and
sacred functions; and makes the bishop, in some
sense, present wherever the minister is, who acts by
his power and orders, and does what is pleasing to him
according to the spirit of the heavenly High Priest.

" 30. As he spake these words, many believed on
him. 31. ^f Then said Jesus to those Jews which
believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then
are ye my disciples indeed;"

It is not then sufficient, barely to believe in Christ,
we must likewise <s continue in his word," in order
to be his " disciples indeed." To continue therein, is

CHAPTER VIII. 343

not to have only a transient taste of it, not to love
some of its truths, nor to practise some one part of
it, nor to observe it only externally, or for some days,
or even months; but it is, to love all its truths, to
persevere in the practice of them throughout the
whole course of our lives, and that upon a principle
of love to God, and to make his law our joy and
delight. O divine word of Jesus Christ, habitation
of the Christian, mansion of delight, joy, and repose,
retirement where we enjoy true peace, fortress where
we are secure from all the insults of our enemy, sa-
cred temple where we adore God, and palace wherein
we possess all the treasures of the divine wisdom and
knowledge ! Happy is that person who really con-
tinues in thee by an assiduous meditation, and an
invrolable adherence to thee, and who, in every state
and condition of life, either remains in thy bosom,
or retreats into it !

" 32. And ye shall know the truth, and the truth
shall make you free."

The Jews learned nothing but types and shadows
in the school of Moses; the Gentiles, only falsehoods
and lies in the school of the devil: but Christians,
in the school of Christ, learn the truth, which con-
founds falsehood, disperses shadows, and fulfils the
law. We never learn or know the truth perfectly,
except when we love it; and we never love it, but
only when the love thereof is graven in our hearts
by the finger of God, which is his Spirit. And this
love makes us free, in delivering us from the heavy
yoke of the letter and ceremonies of the law, from
criminal inclinations, from deceitful pleasures, and
worldly fears, which render us slaves to sin. O

344 ST. JOHN.

Spirit of truth, vouchsafe to teach me the truth, in
that way which is peculiar to thyself — thou, who art
the only master and teacher thereof.

" 33. 51 They answered him, We be Abraham's
seed, and were never in bondage to any man : how
sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?"

O vanity of the children of Adam ! they boast of
their nobility, because they are ignorant how much
sin has degraded them. How great is the blindness,
for men to be in bondage, and not to know it ! And
yet how common is this blindness ! This is the
great wound of a heart not yet set at liberty by the
truth, to be in bondage and misery, and yet to think
itself free and happy. Cause me, Lord, to know
my bondage, make me sensible of my misery; for
fear lest, like the Jews, I should despise the promise
of liberty, and insolently reject the hand which offers
to make me free.

" 34. Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say
unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant*
of sin." [* Fr. Slave.]

Sin renders us slaves to the law of sin and of the
devil ; and so much the more slaves, the more we
believe ourselves masters of our own will, and free
from all law. Miserable is that person, who, being
a slave by birth through original sin — a slave by right
of war, having suffered himself to be overcome — and
even a slave by choice, having voluntarily sold him-,
self — still loves his bondage, and flies from his de-
liverer ! If we doubt whether we be slaves, let us
but enter into ourselves, and consider the corruption
of our will, of which we have made for ourselves as it
were a chain of iron. Break this chain, O Lord, I

CHAPTER VIII. 345

beseech thee, and resume that which belongs to thee
alone.

" 35. And the servant abideth not in the house
for ever; but the Son abideth ever."

The law cannot possibly restore to the sinner the
right which he had to live eternally with his God in
heaven, because it cannot deliver him from the sla-
very of sin. It is only the Spirit of the divine adop-
tion which can revive that right within us, by de-
livering us from sin, and making us children of God,
members of his Son, and co-heirs with him to whom
alone the inheritance belongs. As we regain this
right only by charity, so we preserve it only by pre-
serving charity, which alone opens heaven, because
this alone never sins, this alone makes a good use of
the creatures, and this alone fulfils as it ought the
law of God.

ts 36. If the Son therefore shall make you free,
ye shall be free indeed."

There is now no freedom in respect of that which
is good, but only through the grace of the Son of
God, which alone sets the sinner's will free from the
dominion of concupiscence. In vain do men seek,
by means of riches and reputation, of authority and
preferment, of study and philosophical wisdom, to free
themselves from any particular subjection and slavery
of mind ; they labour only to make themselves new
chains, while the heart is not freed from the bonds
of iniquity, and from the slavery of the passions, by
the only deliverer Jesus Christ. The freedom of
my will itself, O Jesus, is the most servile thing in
Die, and the most enslaved, so long as it is not set at

p3

346 ST. JOHN.

liberty by thee. The more thou leavest it to itself,
the less will it be free.

" 37. I know that ye are Abraham's seed; but
ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place*
in you." [* Fr. Nor entrance in your heart.]

It is only to his shame that a wicked man glories
in being descended from holy men, whose example
he will not imitate. The true children of Abraham
have their hearts open to evangelical truth, because
it is the completion of the promises of which they are
heirs. It is a dismal omen, to be only deaf thereto ;
it is more so, to be provoked against it : but to per-
secute and endeavour to destroy those who preach
it, is the last degree of perverseness and obduracy.
The word of God requires a heart which is empty.
A heart filled with earthly projects, carnal interests,
ambition, thoughts of raising a fortune, worldly busi-
ness, and with the love of the pleasures and super-
fluities of life, is not fit to receive the evangelical
seed. When a man shuts his heart against it by
his passions, he opens it, at the same time, to the
greatest crimes.

M 38. I speak that which I have seen with my
Father; and ye do that which ye have seen with
your father."

The children of God imitate their Father: the
wicked imitate the devil, whose children they show
themselves to be, in following his inclinations and
desires, and acting by his spirit. Who can forbear
trembling, when he considers this division of two
models or examples so opposite to each other, and
between which there is no medium — God or the
devil? Whoever does not conform his life to the

CHAPTER VIII. 347

will of God, whose child he pretends to be, suffers
himself to be led and drawn away at the will and
pleasure of the devil, and chooses him for his father.
It is the property of the children of God, after the
example of their Head, to study the will of their
father, and to make that the constant rule of all
their actions.

" 39. They answered and said unto him, Abraham
is our father. Jesus saith unto them, If ye were
Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abra-
ham."

In vain do we glory in being called Christians, if
we do not the works of Christians. It is neither
the name, nor faith alone, nor one good work, which
will cause us to be owned for the children of God ;
but it must be the general tenor of our works and
actions, our whole life and conversation : it is accord-
ing to this that we are either Christians or worldly
persons. Whoever desires to know whether he be-
long to Christ, must consider and examine, whether
his iife be really Christian, and conformable to the
gospel of Jesus Christ.

" 40. But now ye seek to kill me, a man that
hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God :
this did not Abraham."

Nothing is so contrary to salvation, as to hate
those who preach the truth to us. It was the dis-
tinguishing virtue of Abraham, to receive the truth
with faith and obedience: it is this disposition which
is the mark and character of his children according
to the Spirit. A sick person, who rejects his phy-
sician, and will take neither remedies nor food, is
past all hopes of recovery. The truth contains both :

348 ST. JOHN.

it heals and nourishes the heart of those who re-
ceive it: but it is not the truth taught by philoso-
phers which has this virtue, but the truth of God.

"41. Ye do the deeds of your father. Then
said they to him, We be not born of fornication ;
we have one Father, even God."

That man who has delivered himself up to sin, is,
in the sight of God, no other than a child of the
devil, though he bear the quality of a child of God
in the sight of men. A sick person who conceals
his disease, has no desire to be cured. And a sin-
ner who is intent on nothing but his own justifica-
tion, labours only to render himself more criminal.
An humble acknowledgment of our faults and miser-
ies, is the first remedy which God would apply to
the wound of our pride; and this is that which pride
itself will by no means endure. It is no verv comr
mon thing, for a man to be humble upon his having
fallen into sin, and to forbear adding hypocrisy to
his other faults. Let us take great care, lest the
fear of losing the esteem of men, hinder us from dis-
covering our sins to those of whom God thinks fit
to make use in order to heaf and raise us up. This
ig a very dangerous temptation, especially for those
who have always made profession of greater piety
and religion than others. It is by this humiliation
that God designs to secure their salvation.

" 42. Jesus said unto them, If God were your
Father, ye would love me : for I proceeded forth
and came from God ; neither came I of myself, but
he sent me."

One of the first-fruits of the faith of true Chris-
tians, is love and devotion towards Jesus Christ, a

CHAPTER VIII. 349

singular respect and reverence for his word, and
a particular application to honour his incarnation,
whereby he was given and sent to us by his Father,
and proceeded forth from his bosom without ever
leaving it. When men really love God, they have
a respect for all those who speak from him, and they
honour him in his ministers. For what reason does
Christ, our sovereign High Priest, repeat this truth
so often — that he came not of himself, but was sent
by his Father — if it be not to teach us the necessity
of ecclesiastical vocation and mission ?

" 43. Why do ye not understand my speech ?
even because ye cannot hear my word."

Carnal man does not understand the speech of
God, and has no manner of relish for his word. As
love disposes men to hear those favourably whom
they love, and to enter readily into their thoughts ;
so envy and hatred inspire them with a spirit of con-
tradiction, and shut the mind against the discourse
of those whom they do not love. It therefore con-
cerns us highly, not to suffer ourselves to be pre-
judiced against the ministers of God's word: for
prejudice passes easily from the persons to the truths
which they preach. This prejudice was of fatal
consequence to the Jews, and ruined them irrecover-
ably. Who can tell whether his own will not have
the same effect, if he do not earnestly endeavour to
lay it aside ? It is no small sin, for a man to oppose
one single truth, or to reject it merely in opposition
to certain persons.

" 44. Ye are of your father the devil, and the
lusts of your father ye will do : he was a murderer
from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, be-

350 ST. JOHN.

cause there is no truth in him. When he speaketh
a lie, her speaketh of his own : for he is a liar, and
the father of it."

The wicked person imitates the devil, falls in with
his lusts and desires, and serves for an instrument
to accomplish his designs. That man who violently
opposes the truth, which is the life of the soul, and
endeavours to root it out of the heart of its disciples,
is no other than a murderer. We have here two
characters of the devil, and of the Jews his children.
The first is, contempt and opposition with respect to
truth. The second is, envy and persecution against
those who continue faithful. To adhere firmly to
it, it is necessary to have the love thereof engraved
deeply in our heart. Truth is the proper stock, as
it were, of Jesus Christ; and when he teaches it, he
finds it in himself: for he is truth itself, and the
fountain and father of it in respect of us. That
which Christ is in relation to truth, the same is the
devil in relation to lies. O truth ! what does a man
become when he forsakes thee? what is a mind and
heart delivered up to falsehood, after having been fed
with the truth and sustained by it?

" 45. And because I tell you the truth, ye be-
lieve me not."

The truth is but little hearkened to and ill re-
ceived, even from the mouth of Jesus Christ himself,
if his grace do not touch the heart. The most evi-
dent mark of the corruption of any heart is, when,
instead of thankfully receiving the truth for which it
was made, it shows the greatest sharpness and bitter-
ness against those who teach it, and is filled with the
gall of envy and hatred. The truth has always a

CHAPTER VIII. 351

very dangerous and deplorable effect upon men, when
it only occasions them to have no confidence in those
who preach it.

Sect. IV. — He that is of God, heareth God's
words. Christ said to have a devil : refers his
honour to his Father : is before Abraham, The
Jews attempt to stone him.

"46. Which of you convinceth me of sin ? And
if I say the truth, why do ye not believe me?"

A preacher or pastor ought to be unblameable in
his life and conversation. Is he, who shows in his
manners plain and evident marks of the infidelity of
his heart in respect of the truths of the gospel, a
likely person to induce others to believe them ? It
belongs to none but the Prince of pastors to be en-
tirely free from sin, and to join to the priesthood a
perfect innocence : but his ministers ought to be at
least free from heinous crimes. O Jesus, the only
priest truly innocent, without spot, and separate
from sinners, vouchsafe to confer upon thy ministers
some part of that holiness and sanctity with which
thou art filled.

" 47. He that is of God heareth God's words :
ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of
God."

The disposition with which a man hears the word
of God, and the use which he makes thereof, show
whether he is the servant of God, and how far he is
so. What can be said of so many Christians, who
take so little care either to hear or to read the word
of God, or who do it only by way of ceremony and
for fashion's sake, but that they are Christians by

352 ST. JOHN. -

way of ceremony, and use some small endeavours
after salvation only for fashion's sake? We are
never tired with hearing a friend speak, or with
hearing him spoken of; and shall we pretend to be
the friends of God, and yet have a negligence, dis-
gust, and perhaps a continual forgetfulness of the
word and of the things of God? What! "not to
be of God I" Lord, can we have the least degree of
faith, and not choose to do and suffer every thing,
rather than expose ourselves to this misfortune?

" 48. 51 Then answered the Jews, and said unto
him, Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan, and
hast a devil?"

This is matter of instruction and consolation, and
a fit subject of meditation for all those who are
calumniated. Deplorable blindness this, and dread-
ful hardness of heart ! that men should abandon
themselves to the greatest blasphemies, and to the
most horrid crimes, not only without hesitation,
without remorse, without any consideration either of
their duty or their sin ; but even with an erroneous
persuasion of the goodness of their actions, and ap-
plauding themselves for their great knowledge and
judgment ! There is a false kind of evidence, a per-
suasion arising from error, an acquiescence under
seduction, which makes human reason easy, and the
conscience secure, even when it takes Christ for a
reprobate, and for a seducer animated by the spirit of
darkness. A state which was common to almost all
the people of God, to almost every priest, Pharisee,
and doctor of the law then alive, is not perhaps so
very uncommon at this time as we imagine. Is it
not a still greater degree of blindness, to endeavour
to excuse these blind wretches from the guilt of sin ?

CHAPTER VIII. 353

"49. Jesus answered, I have not a devil: but I
honour ray Father, and ye do dishonour me."

In vain should we seek, amongst all the philoso-
phers, for such a pattern of meekness in bearing in-
juries, and of wisdom in justifying himself from the
most outrageous calumnies. It is necessary, after
Christ's example, always to distinguish exactly those
calumnies which fall upon the ministry, and under-
mine the very foundation of the Christian mission
and doctrine, from those which are only personal ;
and among the latter, such as are indefinite, as a
general accusation of Samaritanism, heresy, &c.
from a particular accusation of some certain error, or
of some criminal action. A man may neglect and
despise all personal and indefinite calumnies ; but he
ought to vindicate himself from the other. The
reputation of a minister of the church is not his own,
but the church's; as that of an embassador, or of a
minister of state, belongs to the prince and to the
state. The more an embassador honours his prince
by his fidelity, wisdom, and address, and the more
he is approved and authorized by him, the more any
injury which is done him, is done to the prince him-
self, and to the state. A minister sent from God
would be unworthy of his character, if he should
tamely suffer himself to be represented as an emis-
sary of the devil, and an apostle of lies. Even Jesus
Christ, who suffered all that could possibly be suf-
fered, teaches him to justify himself from such
calumnies as these, after his example, and in his
spirit.

" 50. And I seek not mine own glory : there is
one that seeketh and judgeth."

354 ST. JOHN.

The care of a minister of Christ for his own re-
putation has its proper bounds, which he ought per-
fectly to know, and which he must not transgress
under pretence of seeking the glory of God, and the
honour of his ministry. He ought to vindicate, but
not revenge himself. It is sufficient to have repelled
the calumny with a moderation becoming a Christian
and a priest : his exemplary life, and the prudence of
his conduct, are to perform the rest. What they
cannot effect, he must leave to God; lest, from be-
ing a minister of his mercy, he become the minister
of his own revenue.

o

" 51. Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man
keep my saying, he shall never see death."

The keeping or observing the word of God gives
eternal life. It is a great mistake to imagine, that
it must needs be a failing and imperfection to have
that in view, and as a motive to our endeavours;
whereas we ought to be thankful to God for his
goodness in affording us such a support to our weak-
ness, and such an incentive to quicken our sloth. A
minister of Jesus Christ may suffer himself to be
humbled; but he must never suffer either the minis-
try, or the word of truth, of which he is the minister,
to be decried and undervalued. Can he possibly do
better than to imitate his Saviour, who here extols
the excellency of his word and truth so much the
more, the more the Jews vilified it, in endeavouring
to make it pass for the word of the devil?

11 52. Then said the Jews unto him, Now we
know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead,
and the prophets ; and thou sayest, If a man keep
my saying, he shall never taste of death."

CHAPTER Vltl. 355

The greatest meekness cannot win the hearts of
the declared enemies of truth : but this does not ex-
cuse us from exercising it towards them even to the
last, after the example of Jesus Christ. This de-
claration, which proceeded just now from the mouth
of Christ, and which is so full of comfort and conso-
lation to the lovers of evangelical truth, serves only,
through the just judgment of God, and the inherent
malice of these Jews, to harden them the more, and
to increase the delusion of their false evidence and
persuasion. Let us be very careful to secure our-
selves from falling into so miserable a state as this :
it begins sometimes by a very small matter.

" 53. Art thou greater than our father Abraham,
which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom
makest thou thyself?"

The world knows no other death besides that
which separates the soul from the body, and has no
notion of that which separates it from its God, which
the patriarchs and prophets avoided by keeping his
word, and adhering to Christ before his coming.
Every thing becomes obscure to those who have
once delivered up their hearts to incredulity. Their
remembrance of the prophets ought to have applied
their minds to consider and observe in Christ the
miracles and other marks of the Messias, contained
in their prophecies; and they remember them, only
to lessen him and set him below all the prophets.
Lord, let me never be so unfortunate as to know
thee no better.

" 54. Jesus answered, If I honour myself, my
honour is nothing : it is my Father that honoureth
me ; of whom ye say, that he is your God."

356 ST. JOHN.

Who will dare to glorify or honour himself, since
Jesus Christ did not? It belongs to the creature to
humble itself: God alone has a right to exalt it.
Human glory or honour is nothing, were it even in
Jesus Christ himself. He sets a value only upon
that which he received from his Father, by the
mouth of St. John, by the voice heard from heaven,
and by miracles.

" 55. Yet ye have not known him; but I know
him : and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be
a liar like unto you : but I know him, and keep his
saying."

Observe here three duties with respect to God.
1. To know him. 2. To confess him. 3. To obey
him. Christ spares not the pride of these per-
sons, who boasted that they alone had the key of the
knowledge of God, whom they ought indeed to have
known better than any others. This is a judgment
which should make us tremble; to see that the light
of the Scripture, the knowledge of God, and all the
assistance of the law, became the source of blindness
to these wicked Jews, even to the priests and doctors
themselves, through the ill use which their pride
made of them all. Since we cannot worship and
adore God unless we love and obey him, let us not
flatter ourselves that we know him as our Master
and Father, so long as we despise his law, and do
not perform his will.

" 56. Your father Abraham rejoiced * to see
my day ; and he saw it, and was glad." [# Ft\
Desired ardently.]

There was no true joy under the Old Testament,
but only in the hopes of the coming of Jesus Christ.

CHAPTER VIII. 357

The piety of the patriarchs, prophets, and other holy
persons before the incarnation, consisted in desiring,
praying, and looking for the Saviour who was to be
born, and in earnestly endeavouring to render them-
selves worthy to have a share in the favour and bless-
ing of his coming. Is insensibility or coldness to-
wards Jesus Christ to be endured in Christians, who
do not now behold his mysteries at a distance, and
have not only the promise of them as Abraham had,
but have received this inestimable gift, have been
washed in his blood, nourished with his flesh, filled
with his Spirit, and loaded with his benefits ? Let
the faith, the ardent desire, and the joy of this holy
patriarch, inspire us with the same sentiments and
affections towards Christ, cause us to love his in-
terests, and engage us constantly to discharge our
duties to him in spirit and in truth.

" 57. Then said the Jews unto him, Thou art
not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham ?"

The more light is offered to a blind and obdurate
heart, the blinder does it still grow. It has no eyes,
but only for sensible and corporeal objects. Every
thing contributes to the nourishment of the faith and
piety of the elect : every thing serves to increase the
infidelity of the wicked, who turn every thing into
ridicule. It is the common way of those who affect
the character of strong reasoning, to believe nothing
but what they can comprehend, and to reject what-
ever is above their understanding. A man passes
with them for no other than whimsical, when he be-
lieves what they despise : but what signifies their
judgment to those who are so much the more esteemed
in the judgment of God, the more they disregard the
judgment of the world?

358 ST. JOHN.

w 58. Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say
unto you, Before Abraham was, I am."

This answer of Jesus Christ is a proof of his
divinity and eternity. He was in God his Father
as his Word and wisdom, and he was pleased to
think of giving himself to us. He is come, he has
given himself, and yet we perhaps think very seldom
of him ; so far are we from giving and consecrating
ourselves to his divine person, incarnate for our sakes.
Thou, O Jesus, art before Abraham, not only in the
designs and decrees of God thy Father, as the enemies
of thy divinity say, for in that sense every thing is
eternal; but in his bosom, as his co-eternal, consub-
stantial Son, and together with him the Creator of
Abraham. I adore thee according to what thou art
from eternity in God thy Father; and all the vain
subtleties of the wit of man are not able to stagger
my faith.

" 59. Then took they up stones to cast at him :
but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple,
going through the midst of them, and so passed by."

Persecution is the reward of evangelical preachers
in this life : and there are few such, because there
are few who are willing to suffer. The retreat
which Christ here makes is humble, prudent, and
instructive. He does not refuse to die for the truth
of his divinity; he will be a martyr for it in a very
little time : but he reserves himself for a more igno-
minious and cruel punishment, and waits for the
moment appointed by his Father, that he may make
his death a sacrifice of obedience. He goes out of
the temple, because it was designed only for the vic-
tims of the Jewish people, and not for the victim of the

CHAPTER IX. 359

world; a victim which requires a new altar, and is to
be sacrificed in the sight of the whole earth. If the
crime of the Jews be already committed in their
mind, by their purpose and design of stoning our
blessed Saviour; the sacrifice is likewise accom-
plished in the heart of Christ, by his disposition and
desire. Let me learn of thee, O victim of God,
thus to sacrifice myself on all occasions, and to anti-
cipate the sacrifice of my death, in keeping myself
continually disposed and prepared for it by the spirit
of sacrifice.

CHAPTER IX.

Sect. I. — The Man born Blind restored to Sight.

" 1. And as Jesus passed by, he saw a man which
was blind from his birth."

Blindness of body is not only one of the punish-
ments of sin, but also an emblem of spiritual blind-
ness, in which all the children of Adam are born by
reason of sin. It is a small matter not to behold
this light, which is common to inferior animals : but
what is it to be deprived of that light which is my
life, my happiness, and my God ! which is thyself,
O eternal light ! without which every thing is but
darkness, wandering, and death, and even in this life
a beginning of hell ! Everlasting thanks be ren-
dered to thee, O Jesus, for that, in passing through
this mortal life, through ignominies and sufferings,
from the manger to the cross, thou didst vouchsafe
to see me before I was capable of seeing thee, and
didst cast upon me those eyes of mercy, which, of a

360 ST. JOHN.

child of darkness, have made me become a child of
light.

" 2. And his disciples asked him, saying, Master,
who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was
born blind?"

It is plain from hence, that it was a common
opinion, even among the Jews, that the diseases of
man take their rise from sin, and that from his birth
he is guilty of a sin, of which this blindness might be
the punishment. Every child of Adam ought to
accustom himself, when under afflictions, to contem-
plate the justice of God, who can render none miser-
able but those whom he finds sinners. There is
danger in seeking after the cause of the miseries of
others in personal sins, which we may perhaps rashly
impute to them ; but we cannot possibly do amiss in
seeking in our own the cause of that which we our-
selves suffer.

" 3. Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned,
nor his parents : but that the works of God should
be made manifest in him."

There are some afflictions which God sends only
for his own glory ; and he who endures them is but
too highly honoured, in being subservient thereto at
the expense of every thing which is most near and
dear to him. Though God never afflict the inno-
cent," and though afflictions always serve either to
punish sin or to purify the sinner, yet this is not al-
ways the first, and never the principal design of God.
He intends here to honour and authorize his Son;
but it is to his own glory that the miracles, authority,
and glory of his Son ultimately tend. Happy is that
minister of this Son who imitates his example, in

CHAPTER* IX. 361

never seeking his own glory in the most eminent and
remarkable works which God is pleased to perform
by his hands. Let us always remember that it is the
work of God, and not our own, which shines forth in
us; and that it ought to shine forth only to his
glory.

" 4. I must work the works of him that sent me,
while it is day : the night cometh, when no man can
work."

It is a holy and apostolical disposition in a pastor
or evangelical labourer, to be entirely employed in the
work of God, to have no other business besides that
of his mission, and never to be tired with working as
long as the day of his life lasts; the time of rest
comes not till the day is at an end. When Christ,
the Sun of Righteousness, either withdraws himself
from us, or takes us out of the world, it is a night
which is much more to be feared than that of nature.
This night cometk. and it cometh very fast, wherein
nothing more can b^-done in order to salvation ; when
nothing shall remain to us but what we have done in
the day of this life; when whatever is not the work
of God in us shall be the subject of his judgment ;
and when every work of God which we have turned
to our own glory shall turn to our own condemnation.
What a dreadful misfortune is it to suffer ourselves
to be surprised by this night!- — a night which will
never have an end, in respect of all those who are
thereby surprised.

" 5. As long as I am in the world, I am the light
of the world."

The bodily presence of Jesus Christ on earth made
Vol. III. Q 57

362 ST. JOHN.

the day or light of the world ; and his spiritual presence
in the church, and in a heart, by faith and grace,
makes the day or light of that heart, and of the whole
church. He is just going to show, by enlightening
this one person, that it is he who lighteth every man
who comes into the world ; and that he likewise came
on purpose to enlighten the world, which lay buried
in the darkness of ignorance and sin. It is a great
misfortune to the Jews, to have changed, in respect
of themselves, this day into night, this light into
darkness, by not making any spiritual advantage of
the time of his preaching: but this misfortune is
common to all those who reject the light of truth,
and who spend the short time of this life in doing
any thing rather than what concerns their salvation ;
and this in the midst of the instructions, good ex-
amples, and all the other assistances which are to be
found in the church.

" 6. When he had thus spoken, he spat on the
ground, and made clay of the spittle, and he anointed
the eyes of the blind man with the clay,"

He who made man out of the earth, cures him
with earth. That which, in the hand of another
person, would cause blindness, serves to restore sight
in the hand of Jesus Christ ; because the creature is
nothing, and can do nothing but what the Creator is
pleased to make it be and do. Spittle being a figure
of wisdom, we have here an emblem of the union of
the eternal wisdom with the earth and clay of our
flesh, and of the wonderful virtue of that union. Let
us, in this blind man, behold as in a glass the blind-
ness of our own soul, through its fondness towards
the creatures. Earthly things, the works of the

CHAPTER IX. 363

divine wisdom, of which they bear so many evident
marks, do, notwithstanding, blind the minds of men.
They hinder them from seeing heaven and heavenly
things, though they are as it were laid open to their
sight. Put thy hand, O Lord, I beseech thee, upon
the eyes of my heart, and let thy divine unction cure
its blindness.

" 7. And said unto him, Go, wash in the pool of
Siloam, (which is, by interpretation, Sent.) He
went his way therefore, and washed, and came see-
ing."

This pool of Siloam is an emblem of the baptism
of Jesus Christ, sent by the Father, which cures the
blindness of sin in all those who are obedient to the
word of faith. If we admire in this pool the super-
natural virtue which God gives it to enlighten the
eyes of one blind man, how can we continually be-
hold the baptismal fountain with so much indif-
ference ? Is it more to open the eyes of the body
than to penetrate into the very soul of all baptized
persons, not only to enlighten the eyes thereof, but
to heal it entirely, to restore it to life, to sanctify it,
and to consecrate it to God ? I return most humble
and hearty thanks to thee, O Lord, for that which
thou hast wrought in me by means of this sacred
pool ; and I admire that miracle of illumination, which
is continually performed in thy church, and which is
evident to the eyes of faith.

" 8. 51 The neighbours therefore, and they which
before had seen him that he was blind, said, Is not
this he that sat and begged ?"

The blindness of the body is not always accompa-
nied with poverty ; but that of the soul is inseparable

9 2

364 ST. JOHN.

from it. Whence comes it to pass, that, when we
hear of a returning sinner, instead of unprofitable
discourse, we do not say one to another, in admira-
tion and acknowledgment of the goodness of God,
4 Is not this that poor, miserable, and blind wretch,
who but just now sat in the darkness of sin, being an
enemy of God, a slave of the devil, and a child of
wrath ? And behold, he is become a child of light
and benediction, a child of God, a member of Christ,
and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven !' The
reason why we do not entertain one another in this
mariner, is because we have but little inclination to
apply our minds to spiritual things, and because our
faith is almost always asleep, and as it were buried in
flesh and blood.

44 9. Some said, This is he: others said, He is
like him : but he said, I am he."

A sinner, whose heart God has enlightened and
changed by his grace, is not easily known again. He
is no longer the same man — -that child of Adam,
who was entirely governed by his passions : he is now
a true Christian, in whom there appears nothing but
the humility, charity, and meekness of Christ; in
whom there is no longer the least sign of the love of
the riches, pleasures, and vanities of the world. How
would it be, if one could see his heart? That man
is much to be lamented, who is one of those false
penitents who are not at all different from what they
were, but only as they outwardly make use of the
sacrament, and whom we always know to be the same
by every thing else. A true penitent is ever difficult
to be known by others, never by himself: he is full
of gratitude and acknowledgment for his recovery ;

CHAPTER IX. 365

but has always before his eyes his past diseases and
miseries, and the root and cause of them which he
carries in his own heart. I am, by the grace of
Christ, a person altogether different; but of myself
I am always the same.

" 10. Therefore said they unto him, How were
thine eyes opened ?"

It is a holy and useful curiosity, and such as tends
to the glory of God, to inquire of a person whom he
has newly enlightened, how he wrought in his heart;
how his eyes were opened, so as to see the vanity of
the world, of all its honours, pleasures, amusements,
fashions, maxims, &c. ; and how his mind, blind as
it was to the things of God and of salvation, became
so fully persuaded of the truths of religion and of
the gospel, so attentive and open to the word of God,
and so firmly fixed on every thing that is good.

" 11. He answered and said, A man that is called
Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said
unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash : and
I went and washed, and I received sight."

Many doubt concerning Christ through infidelity,
or are silent through fear, or ask him questions out of
curiosity, or persecute him through malice : one
single person alone confesses him with faith, and
owns him out of gratitude. It is a good sign of
these virtues, when a man is always ready to open his
mind to his neighbour, in relation to the miseries from
which he has been freed, the mercies he has received
from God, and the methods of his conduct; provided
that this tend to the glory of God, and to the edifi-
cation of his neighbour, and that he do it with the
necessary precautions, so as neither to fall into vanity,

366 ST. JOHN.

nor to renew odious ideas, nor to rake into the filth
of past sins.

" 12. Then said they unto him, Where is he?
He said, I know not."

It is good to desire and endeavour to know a man
of God, to whom we see by experience that he gives
a blessing for the illumination of souls. Men seek
with earnestness a skilful physician for the health of
the body, or a learned person to instruct their chil-
dren : but they neglect, they are afraid to find, they
avoid, and reject a man who has the knowledge of
God for the salvation of the soul. It is always the
safest way to withdraw from the esteem of the world,
as Jesus Christ did ; and at least to let the heat of
the first applause be past. It is not always (as in
the case before us) that a sinner, enlightened of God,
does, without any fault of his own, find himself in a
little time in such a state, as not to be able to tell
what is become of Christ in reference to himself: for
this often happens, because he did not take care to
retain him in his heart by his fidelity and gratitude.

Sect. II. — The Inquiry of the Pharisees. Those
who confess Christ put out of the Synagogue.

" f 13. They brought to the Pharisees him that
aforetime was blind."

See here the spirit of the world, where it is often
a crime to give men the true light, and one almost
as great to have received it. It is a temptation to
a virtuous man to see himself pursued and sought
after for a good action, while crimes are committed
by the wicked with impunity. One could have no
comfort under this great disorder, were it not for the

CHAPTER IX. 367

good which God brings out of it. A sinner is
exceedingly to blame when he complains of being
exposed to this calamity, which was endured by the
Holy One of God.

" 14. And it was the sabbath-day when Jesus
made the clay, and opened his eyes."

Festivals were not instituted for men to spend
them in idleness, but to sanctify themselves on those
days by charity, which is the true sabbath, and the
true rest. The sabbath was one of the most mys-
terious observances of the Jewish religion. Christ
chose to heal the sick on that day, to signify what
he was come to do with respect to sinners; and to
show that he was the^same God who created man,
that he was carrying on by the redemption his first
designs and work, and that he had a right to join
the second where the first had ended.

" 15. Then again the Pharisees also asked him
how he had received his sight. He said unto them,
He put clay upon mine eyes, and I washed, and do
see.

Happy had these blind persons been, had they
made this inquiry and search, only out of a desire to
find the light, that they might be cured of their
blindness ! This light was hid in that body of clay,
which was sanctified by its union with the divinity :
and this was the very thing which blinded their
pride, instead of enlightening it. We must seek
the light humbly, if we would not be blinded thereby.
How much does their blindness increase, who seek
after it maliciously, out of envy, and to make a bad
use thereof!

" 16. Therefore said some of the Pharisees, This

368 ST. JOHN.

man is not of God, because he keepeth not the
sabbath-day. Others said, How can a man that is
a sinner do such miracles ? And there was a division
among them."

As that which the Pharisees here said concerning
Christ, is a dreadful instance of a judgment proceed-
ing from envy, where a false appearance of evil pre-
vails above the most convincing proofs of integrity
and piety : so that which others said, is an amiable
instance of a judgment formed by honesty and good
sense, where solid and substantial proofs correct all
disadvantageous appearances. Envy judges of the
works by the persons who do them; equity judges
of persons by their works. The judgments of men
will ever be divided with respect to the best of men,
so long as the world is divided by different passions
and interests.

" IT. They say unto the blind man again, What
sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes?
He said, He is a prophet."

Strange malignity this of the children of Adam !
They are always ready to believe what is evil, not
only without, but even contrary to plain and evident
proof; but they never have sufficient proof to induce
them to believe what is good concerning those whom
they do not love. A sincere and Christian heart
makes no difficulty of speaking according to truth,
even before the enemies thereof. To bear witness
to the integrity, virtue, and innocence of those by
whom God has been pleased to enlighten us, is the
least acknowledgment which we owe both to him and
them.

•' 18. But the Jews did not believe concerning

CHAPTER IX. 369

him, that he had been blind, and received his sight,
until they called the parents of him that had received
his sight. 19. And they asked them, saying, Is
this your son, who ye say was born blind ? how then
doth he now see?"

God makes the injustice of men subservient to his
goodness. The more the Pharisees examine this
miracle in order to raise doubts concerning it, the
more indubitable do they render it. By all this we
see how much it concerns us, not to suffer our minds
to be prepossessed ; since passion closes the eyes
against things the most evident. What pains and
trouble do men give themselves, only to avoid re-
ceiving the truth ! There is no avenue, whereby it
can approach them, which they leave unshut. They
refuse to receive it, only because it displeases them;
and it displeases, only because they will not receive
it out of obstinacy, interest, or blindness. These
Jews have very faithful followers in the persons of
heretics, and of those among the learned, who, by
much examining things, bring themselves to that pass,
as to reject that as incredible which is in itself the
most evident.

" 20. His parents answered them, and said, We
know that this is our son, and that he was born blind :
21. But by what means he now seeth, we know not;
or who hath opened his eyes, we know not : he is of
age, ask him ; he shall speak for himself."

Few persons are willing to expose themselves to
danger in bearing witness to the truth, because few
really love it. Men always find reasons to shift this
obligation off upon others, and to clear themselves of
the trouble : but the question is, how they will clear

23

370 ST. JOHN.

themselves before God. It is dangerous for parents
to give this bad example to their children ; superiors
to inferiors ; masters to their disciples ! The nearer
relation we bear to those who have received signal
blessings from God, the more ought we to look upon
ourselves as concerned in their obligations, and to
assist them in discharging them. When any worldly-
advantage is to be gained, a man is very willing to
make one: but when there is somewhat to be hazarded,
he will have nothing to do in the matter. A father
is always ready to receive all the honour and advan-
tage he can from the talents of an understanding son,
whom the world applauds: but he is the first who
draws back, when the use of those talents is likely
to bring him into any trouble from the great.

" 22. These words spake his parents, because they
feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already,
that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he
should be put out of the synagogue. 23. Therefore
said his parents, He is of age, ask him."

Neither the fear of being deprived of any office,
employment, or temporal advantage, nor even the
dread of an unjust excommunication, ought ever to
hinder us from performing our duty. A sentence
of excommunication never hurts the person against
whom it is pronounced, unless he have done some-
what to deserve it; and it always falls back upon
those who pronounce it, when they do it unjustly.
We never are without the pale of the church, no, not
even when we seem to be driven out of it by the
wickedness of men, so long as we continue united to
God, to Jesus Christ, and to the church itself by
charity. The Holy Ghost, to whom it principally

CHAPTER IX. 371

belongs to bind and loose, never renders himself the
minister of the passion or blindness of men.

Sect. III. — The blind man abused and cast out for
the sake of Christ.

" 24. Then again called they the man that was
blind, and said unto him, Give God the praise: we
know that this man is a sinner."

The pretence of zeal for God's glory, often serves
to cover the purpose and design of committing the
greatest crimes. A perverse and obstinate endeavour
to force a man, contrary to his conscience, to condemn
one whom he knows to be innocent, was employed
against Christ himself; against whom then may it
not be employed ? The positive assertion of persons
of credit, that our neighbour is an ill man, is not
sufficient to give us a right to condemn him, when
we have either any proofs of his innocence, or any
reason to doubt of the truth of their information.
A blind obedience on such occasions, is so far from
giving glory to God, that it is an act of disobedience
to his law.

" 25. He answered and said, Whether he be a
sinner or no, I know not : one thing I know, that,
whereas I was blind, now I see."

It is more easy to find among the poor than among
the rich, such a generous, plain, and persevering ac-
knowledgment, as that here made by this blind man
who had received his sight. Nothing should ever
induce us to disown the favours God has conferred
upon us, when his glory is concerned. With how
much greater gratitude ought a converted sinner to
say, ' I was born blind by reason of Adam's sin ; and

372 ST. JOHN".

thou, Lord, bast vouchsafed to make me a child of
light : I was under the blindness of my own sins, and
thou hast enlightened me : I was in darkness, and
had no sight at all of my duties ; and now I see them
perfectly. Thy name be glorified for this, O my God.'

" 26. Then said they to him again, What did he
to thee?*how opened he thine eyes?"

Envy is indefatigable, and infidelity persists ob-
stinately in its wicked designs. They spare not
even the works of God. The world is full of such
persons as seem seriously to consider these works,
who yet apply their minds thereto with no other pur-
pose but to contradict them, to rob God of the glory
of them, and to make them the subject of their cavils
and disputes. Let me learn, O Lord, to consider
them with reverence; let me therein admire thy
power and greatness, and contemplate those other
perfections, the marks and characters of which are
so visibly impressed on them.

" 27. He answered them, I have told you already,
and ye did not hear: wherefore would ye hear it
again? will ye also be his disciples?"

We ought never to be weary in recounting the
wonders of God's power and goodness, when we meet
with persons who love to hear them; but obdurate
and malicious hearts, which will certainly abuse this
knowledge, are altogether unworthy of it. To re-
ceive spiritual advantage thereby, men must bring
along with them the minds of disciples, such as are
humble, teachable, and obedient, not such as set
themselves up to be judges of the divine works.

" 28. Then they reviled him, and said, Thou art
his disciple; but we are Moses' disciples."

CHAPTER IX. 373

The greatest blessings are frequently looked upon
as curses by the wicked ; or would at least be counted
a grievance by abundance of people of fashion, as
they are called. There are a great many of them,
who would take it as an affront if we should think
them devout; and who would be highly offended, if
we should exhort them to show themselves the ser-
vants of God, and to make profession of Christianity
in their life and conversation. A Christian is but
too happy, when the affronts and injuries of carnal
men have no other effect upon him, but only to make
him more intent on following Christ. It is my glory,
O Lord, to be thy disciple; and such I am resolved
to continue even to my last breath.

" 29. We know that God spake unto Moses : as
for this fellow, we know not from whence he is."

It is extremely dangerous to know some certain
truths, and not to know them well. God spoke indeed
to Moses ; but the most important truth he taught
him was, that he was no more than only a type or
shadow of our blessed Saviour, and that his law was
given to no other end but to lead men to Jesus Christ :
and this was the thing which these Pharisees, these
great pretenders to learning, knew nothing of. It
was, in some respects, an advantage to the Gentiles,
that they had no eminent person to whom they could
be devoted, and that they were under no temptation
of pursuing a wrong path in following only types and
shadows.

" 30. The man answered and said unto them,
Why, herein is a marvellous thing, that ye know not
from whence he is, and yet he hath opened mine
eyes."

374 ST. JOHN.

A man has abundance of strength and courage
when he has the truth on his side. An ignorant
person undertakes here to argue with men of learn-
ing and doctors of the law, and confounds them : the
reason is, because the truth fights in him, and his
adversaries fight against the truth.

"31. Now we know that God heareth not sinners :
but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth
his will, him he heareth."

The prayers of a professed libertine, of a seducer,
and of such sinners as will not think of conversion,
are rejected of God : but those of a sinner, who,
through love to God, hates sin, never are. A peni-
tent sinner is no longer a sinner in the sight of God.
He can never despise the prayer of an humble and
contrite heart; since it is his Spirit who causes it to
pray, and forms the very prayer itself.

" 32. Since the world began was it not heard
that any man opened the eyes of one that was born
blind. 33. If this man were not of God, he could
do nothing."

God never works miracles to authorize an impostor,
or to declare any person innocent and holy, who is
not really so: neither does he ever work any by the
hands of those who desire them only for the support
of errors, or of a false mission. It cannot be pre-
tended by any, that it is according to the method of
the divine dispensations to work any miracles by the
wicked, publicly known to be such; much less in so
great a number, and of so extraordinary a nature as
those of Christ.

" 34. They answered and said unto him, Thou
wast altogether born in sins, and dost thou teach us ?
And they cast him out."

CHAPTER IX. 375

We may observe here three marks or characters of
wicked pastors. The first is, to treat their sheep, and
especially the most harmless of them, with haughti-
ness, and even with contumelious language. The
second, to be altogether impatient that any one should
remind them of their duty. And the third, to have
no love of unity, but to be always ready to drive those
out of the fold who are already in it, instead of in-
viting and bringing those into it who do not belong
thereto. That is a happy separation which divides
us from the world, and from the society of the wicked,
to unite us to Jesus Christ. It is the privilege of this
poor man to be a confessor of Christ, even before he is
a Christian. He loses the communion of the Jewish
church, without having the consolation which Chris-
tians unjustly excommunicated enjoy, who are more
closely and strongly united to the church on that ac-
count: but Christ is just going to make him full
amends another way.

Sect. IV. — The blind Man instructed by Christ f
They who think they see made blind,

" 35. % Jesus heard that they had cast him out ;
and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost
thou believe on the Son of God?"

When the world rejects us and casts us out, then
Christ finds us, discovers himself to us, and gives us
comfort. The very least degree of grace and favour
which God vouchsafes to confer upon us, is sufficient
to support and comfort us under all the evils which
men can bring upon us. They who separate good
men from their society by an unjust excommunication,
do in reality excommunicate themselves, by separat-

376 ST. JOHN.

ing from the communion of saints, and unite those the
closer to Jesus Christ by rendering them more con-
formable to him.

" 36. He answered and said, Who is he, Lord,
that I might believe on him ?"

Docility opens the heart to faith : but it is God
who gives both. Not to believe immediately, but
to desire to be first instructed, is agreeable to the pru-
dence which faith itself requires. When we are
once thoroughly persuaded of the almighty power of
God, we are disposed to believe every thing as soon
as it is sufficiently propounded to our understanding
as coming from him. This new convert, who saw
only one miracle, will rise up in judgment against
those incredulous persons who never have enough.

" 37. And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast both
seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee."

O comfortable, instructive, efficacious, and, as it
were, sacramental words ! which manifest Christ to
the mind, and imprint on the heart the belief of his
divinity, effecting that which they signify. Fidelity
to Christ is well rewarded, when it is honoured with
the particular confidence of Christ himself. The
grace which was rejected by those who were puffed
up with their own learning, is here given to the sim-
plicity and sincerity of an ignorant person, to con-
found the pride of human understanding.

" 38. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he
worshipped him."

A lively faith is always accompanied with humility
and religion ; and the first duty performed by these is
adoration or worship. This faith, though very sud-
denly produced, cannot be justly suspected, being

CHAPTER IX. 377

followed by an act of worship, which few persons then
paid to Christ as the Son of God. That faith is
sufficiently tried, which has showed itself not to be
influenced by any human regards.

" 39. % And Jesus said, For judgment lam come
into this world : that they which see not might see,
and that they which see might be made blind."

Let us with fear and trembling adore this dreadful
judgment of God, which makes known who are, and
who are not his. He blinds the eyes of those who
are puffed up with their own learning and knowledge,
by leaving them in their darkness, and declaring to
them truths and mysteries which they reject through
the hardness of their hearts ; and he enlightens those
who are humble in their ignorance, by communicating
to them his own light. Let us tremble under the
haud of God ; since it is his mercy which makes this
distinction, by giving us that grace which he by no
means owes us, and leaving others in their blindness
by a judgment which they deserve.

" 40. And some of the Pharisees which were with
him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we
blind also?"

It was a plain and evident sign of the blindness of
these men, that they did not know that they were
blind : more unhappy in this respect than he who
wanted bodily sight, since he was sensible of his blind-
ness, and desired earnestly to be cured. Nothing
is more dangerous than to think ourselves enlicrht-
ehed : because then we never humble ourselves on
the account of the darkness which is within us, we
are puffed up with the conceit of that light which we
have not, and are not at all solicitous to obtain that
of God which we imagine we already have.

378 ST. JOHN.

" 41. Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye
should have no sin ; but now ye say, We see ; there-
fore your sin remaineth."

That light or knowledge which is not accompanied
with humility, serves generally to no other end but to
increase our sins. It is nothing but a false persuasion
of being sufficiently instructed and enlightened, which
causes so many persons to continue in their sinful
prejudices, and which hinders them from hearing and
informing themselves better, and from avoiding a mul-
titude of rash judgments, and of other sins. It is
always good to distrust our own light, and to be in a
constant disposition to receive instruction from others.
How knowing soever some may be in Scripture and
divinity, there is a certain manner of knowing what
they do know, which depends only upon God, and
without which they are still blind with all their learn-
ing and knowledge, either natural or acquired. Hu-
mility, docility, and prayer, are the way which leads
to that certain method of knowledge: but we take
no care to put ourselves into this way in order to
arrive at it, when we imagine we have no occasion
for it.

CHAPTER X.

Sect. I. — The Shepherd and the Thief. Christ is
the Door.

" 1. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that en-
tereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth
up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber."

Every thing spoken by Christ is infallibly true:

CHAPTER X. 379

but whenever he delivers any truths with a particular
asseveration, it is either because they are of greater
importance, or because the mind of man is more averse
to them, or because the small number of those
who will practise them may render them incredible.
Strange and terrible alternative ! There is no possible
evasion : Christ himself assures us that he is this
door, (ver. 7.) Whoever, therefore, entereth not
by Jesus Christ into the pastoral office, is no other
than a thief and a robber in the sheepfold. And he
enters not by Jesus Christ, who enters with a prospect
of any other interest besides that of Christ and of his
church. Ambition, avarice, love of ease, a desire to
be distinguished from the crowd, to enjoy the con-
veniences of life, or to promote the interest of one's
family, and even the sole design of providing against
want, these are all ways by which thieves and robbers
enter: and whoever enters by any of these ways, or
by simony, solicitation, craft, violence, &c. deserves
no better name.

" 2. But he that entereth in by the door is the
shepherd of the sheep."

Observe here the marks, qualities, and duties of a
good pastor. The first mark of a good pastor is, a
lawful entrance into the ministry by the internal call
of Christ, namely, by an impulse proceeding from his
Spirit, upon considerations which respect only his
glory, and upon motives which aim at nothing but
the good of his church, the salvation of souls, the
doing the will of God, and the sacrificing himself
entirely to his service, and to that of the meanest of
his sheep. My God, how many are there in the
church who go under the name of pastors, and whom

380 ST. JOHN.

in that quality we are obliged in conscience to obey,
who are no other than thieves and robbers iii thy sight !
Let us not judge rashly of them ; but let us beseech
God that they may judge themselves.

" 3. To him the porter openeth ; and the sheep
hear his voice : and he calleth his own sheep by name,
and leadeth them out."

The second mark of a good pastor is, an exter-
nal call, which is then lawful, and comes from the
Holy Ghost, when it is conveyed by a lawful mission,
and by the apostolic authority of bishops, with a
concurrence of the necessary talents and qualifications,
according to the rules of the church, and in confor-
mity to the spirit of the canons. The Holy Ghost
being the fountain and original of all these things,
it is by them that he is, as it were, the porter of the
fold, and thereby opens the door to pastors, and shuts
it against thieves and robbers. Third, It is not suffi-
cient that a pastor has the gift of the word ; he must
likewise make use of it for the instruction of the sheep :
and, in so doing, he must speak in such a manner as
is suited to their capacity, that it may be truly said,
that the sheep hear his voice. A dumb pastor is not
properly a pastor, but an image. A pastor who
speaks without being understood, is rather an actor or a
mountebank than a preacher. Fourth, It is the duty
of a good pastor to know his sheep perfectly, (for
men call only those by their names who are well
known to them :) to be thoroughly acquainted with
their wants and necessities, both inward and outward,
and with their good and bad inclinations; to endea-
vour to discover the will of God concerning them;
to visit them in their poverty, and in their bodily or

CHAPTER X. 381

spiritual diseases ; to be intent and vigilant, and ready
to assist every one of them in particular; to call his
own sheep, not those of others ; and to forbear in-
vading another man's flock, or affecting to gain the
good opinion and confidence of those sheep which are
not committed to his care. Fifth, He must use his
utmost endeavours to bring souls out of the family of
Adam, and to admit them into that of Christ ; to
bring them, as it were, out of themselves and their
sins, out of their evil habits and inclinations, out of
the diversions of the world, and the pomps of the
devil; and to lead them into the wholesome pastures
of God's word, and into the ways of a Christian life.

" 4. And when he putteth forth his own sheep,
he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him : for
they know his voice."

In the sixth place, it is not sufficient for a pastor to
have shown his own sheep the way, and put them into
it; he must go before them, he must be the first to
practise what he teaches, he must lead such a life as
they may follow without any fear of going astray,
and he must enliven and animate his instructions by
his actions. It is enough for the rest of the faith-
ful to preach by example only; but it is not so for a
pastor, whose sheep can never follow him unless they
hear his voice. In him, preaching the word, and
setting a good example, must always be inseparable.
True Christians have always more regard to the word
of truth than to the example of life ; because it is by
the former that they are to be one day judged.

" 5. And a stranger will they not follow, but
will flee from him: for they know not the voice of

strangers. "

382 ST. JOHN.

In the seventh place, a good pastor is never deserted
by the elect sheep. They are able to discern, by
the light of the Prince of pastors, and by the marks
which he has been pleased to give, true pastors from
thieves and robbers. As all the several parts of the
church of God make but one flock ; so all the different
pastors make but one pastor in Jesus Christ; and
not one of them is a stranger to another. Those
are strangers who teach a strange doctrine.

" 6. This parable spake Jesus unto them ; but
they understood not what things they were which he
spake unto them."

These men neither understand, nor desire to un-
derstand. They show plainly that they are blinder
than they imagine^ and that the light which is in
them is nothing but darkness. God frequently pun-
ishes, by the thickest darkness, the presumption of
those who pretend to have a perfect knowledge of
the Scriptures. These men understand not the words
of the Shepherd, because they are not of his flock.
And the just punishment of men's having rejected
the truth of Christ when it was most plain and evi-
dent, is to find themselves unable to penetrate that
sacred obscurity which he is sometimes pleased to
cast about it.

" 7. Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily,
verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep."

Eighth, A pastor who has entered into the min-
istry by the door, namely, by Jesus Christ, must have
this truth deeply imprinted on his heart, that he
himself is not the door of the sheep, but Jesus
Christ; that it is by him that the sheep find en-
trance into the church, and are admitted to the grace

CHAPTER X. 383

of faith, of the sacraments, of charity, of good works,
and of salvation ; and that it is he who, by his merits
and grace, shuts the wolf out of the fold, and secures
the flock against the temptations, insults, and wicked
designs of the enemy. Lord, it is my only comfort
to know, that without thee I can do nothing, and
that by thy assistance I can do all the good which
thou requirest of me, and avoid all the evil which
thou hast forbidden.

" 8. All that ever came before me are thieves and
robbers : but the sheep did not hear them.,,

Ninth, A pastor ought to remember, that who-
ever boasts of being the way of salvation and the
gate of heaven, shows himself to be a thief and an
impostor ; and that though few are arrived at this
degree of folly, yet that there are many who rely
too much upon their own talents, eloquence, and
labours, as if the salvation of their sheep depended
necessarily thereon : in which respect they are always
robbers, since they rob the grace of Christ of the
glory of saving the sheep. God often disappoints
and puts presumptuous pastors to shame, in not
opening the hearts of their flock to hear and receive
their instructions; but he blesses such as are hum-
ble, in causing them to be heard with attention, and
in giving them the unction of his Spirit, that they
may move and convert souls.

" 9. I am the door : by me if any man enter in,
he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find
pasture."

In the tenth place, a pastor ought to conduct
souls to Jesus Christ, and by him, as the door of
salvation. Life, and an abundant plenty of all sorts

384 ST. JOHN.

of good things, are in his hands, that he may bestow
them on those who have a full trust and confidence
in him, and rely solely upon his grace. Will Chris-
tians never be persuaded that Christ is their trea-
sure, and that it is in and by him that they are
to seek all graces, and all assistances, spiritual and
temporal? Yes, Lord Jesus, thou art the door both
of grace and of glory. It is by thee that we enter
into the church, to find there the pasture of thy word
and of thy heavenly doctrine, of thy mysteries, of
thy sacraments, and of thy precious body and blood.
It is by thee that, when we go out of this world, we
enter into heaven, there to find that only pasture of
eternal truth, in which thou wilt feed thy sheep for
ever.

" 10. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and
to kill, and to destroy : I am come that they might
have life, and that they might have it more abun-
dantly."

In the eleventh place, the sole end which a pastor
ought to propose to himself, after the example of the
Prince of pastors, is to use his utmost endeavours to
procure his sheep eternal life, by the means of the
life of grace. He, as well as Jesus Christ, is a
pastor only to this purpose. Whoever does not
apply himself to this is a thief, who enters into the
ministry only to steal the revenues of the church, to
kill and murder souls by his errors, his pernicious
maxims, his scandalous example, or his negligence,
and to lay waste and destroy every thing in the flock
of God. That which men may imagine they have
no intent of doing, the devil really designs ; and these
thieves are his instruments. What judgment have

CHAPTER X. 385

patrons of benefices reason to expect, who, instead
of presenting pastors to the flock of Christ, present
thieves and robbers, who come only to plunder and
destroy all in the church ! O Jesus, the true pastor,
give me life, I beseech thee, that superabundant life
of which thou art the only source, by thy death, and
by thy new life, by thy body, thy blood, and thy
Spirit !

Sect. II. — The good Shepherd and the Hireling,
Christ gives his life for the Sheep. He is said
to be possessed and mad.

"11. I am the good shepherd : the good shep-
herd giveth his life for the sheep. "

Twelfth, The good pastor ought to sacrifice
himself for his sheep, either by labouring in his min-
istry, or, if there be occasion, even by exposing his
life for the benefit and advantage of his flock. What
strange disorder and confusion does it make, when
pastors act directly contrary, and are always ready
to sacrifice their sheep to their passions, their avarice,
their ease, and their resentments ! It is no other
than to sacrifice them, for a man to choose rather to
see them perish, than to put himself to the expense
which is necessary to procure them instructions, or
to undergo some fatigue in constant application,
visits, and the other duties of his ministry. That
person is very far from giving his life for the salva-
tion of souls, who refuses to give up even his time
and application to that end.

" 12. But he that is an hireling, and not the shep-
herd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf

Vol. III. R 57

386 ST. JOHN.

coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth ; and the
wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep."

In the thirteenth place, a good pastor must care-
fully distinguish betwixt a mercenary spirit and the
pastoral charity : the former causes a man to look
upon the sheep as his own property, that he may lord
it over them, and make what advantage he can of
them ; by the latter, a man looks upon them as his
own, on no other account but only because they are
Christ's, whose interests are the same with his own.
The hireling counts them his own no longer than
they are profitable to him ; the shepherd looks upon
them as his, as long as he himself can be serviceable
to them. There never is a more proper time to
discern true pastors from hirelings, than when per-
secution, poverty, pestilence, or some other distemper,
has seized the flock. Never is the shepherd more
constant in his attendance on it ; never is the hireling
more ready to leave and abandon it.

" 13. The hireling fleeth, because he is an hire-
ling, and careth not for the sheep."

A pastor ought, in the fourteenth place, to con-
sider, that to flee when he ought to stand his ground,
to yield up the interests of his flock when he ought
to maintain them, to hide himself when he ought to
appear, and to be silent when he ought to speak —
that to act thus, is a plain indication that a man has
either no concern at all for the welfare of his sheep,
or more regard to his own temporal conveniencies
than to their eternal salvation. From the time that
a man is mercenary, he has within him a certain
criminal indifference for every thing relating to the
interest of God and his church, and is ready to give

CHAPTER X. 387

it all up for any shadow of worldly fortune and ad-
vantage.

" 14. I am the good shepherd, and know my
sheep, and am known of mine. 15. As the Father
knoweth me, even so know I the Father ; and I lay
down my life for the sheep."

In the fifteenth place, a good pastor ought not only
to know his sheep, but likewise to employ his thoughts
continually upon them, and to bear them always in
his heart, in imitation and honour of the eternal Fa-
ther and Son, who are incessantly employed in con-
templating each other with a certain knowledge of
love: for a good pastor is a father, and his sheep are
his children. This knowledge which the Father
has with respect to his Son, as the Head of his elect,
and the Pastor or Shepherd of his sheep, compre-
hends within it all his designs concerning the Head
and the members, and all his eternal purposes re-
lating to the redemption of the sheep by the death
of the Pastor, and to their sanctification and eternal
salvation by him and in him. The knowledge which
the Son has with respect to his Father, is a know-
ledge of adherence to his designs, and of obedience
even unto death for the sake of his sheep. And as
he never was one moment without this knowledge of
love, obedience, and sacrifice ; so he never was one
moment without giving his life for the sheep, which
is here signified to us by these words, " I know,"
and " I give," &c. Good pastors adore this know-
ledge of love and election in the Father, and of ad-
herence and obedience in the Son; they devote them-
selves to him to be subservient to the Father's de-
signs concerning the elect ; they dedicate themselves

r2

3S8 ST. JOHN.

to their service, sacrifice themselves continually for
them, and, with reverence and adoration, conform
themselves to all the dispositions of Christ towards
them ; saying with Paul, " We endure all things
for the elect's sake."

" 16. And other sheep I have, which are not of
this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall
hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one
shepherd."

In the sixteenth place, a good pastor never thinks
lie has gained souls enough over to God, he is con-
tinually desirous to bring in more, and labours in-
cessantly to fill up the number of the elect, which is
known only to God, and to complete and perfect at
length the body of Christ. Both Jews and Gentiles
are re-united in the church, which alone is the mys-
tical body of Jesus Christ. The church is one by
the unity of the God whom she worships, of the
Head who governs her, of the Holy Spirit which
animates her, of the gospel which directs her, of the
baptism which purifies her, of the sacrifice which she
offers, of the bread which feeds her, of the faith
which supports her, of the hope which exalts her, of
the country to which she tends, and of the charity
which unites her at present to God, and will perfect
her eternally in him. Let us comfort ourselves
under those divisions which afflict us here on earth,
by the hope and prospect of that unity which we
wait for and expect in heaven.

" 17. Therefore doth my Father love me, because
I lay down my life, that I might take it again."

In the seventeenth place, nothing renders a pas-
tor more amiable in the sight of God, nothing draws

CHAPTER X. 389

down upon him more graces and blessings, and more
speedily advances the work of his sanctification,
than a contempt of all earthly things, of the con-
veniencies of life, and of life itself, that he may ap-
prove himself a faithful minister of Christ. A man
may justly be said to lay down his life, when he lays
down the love thereof; when he offers it up sincerely
to God, to be spent in his service ; and when he is
disposed and ready to lose it in any manner whatever
for his glory. The hope of finding and taking it
again by means of the resurrection, is so far from
lessening this sacrifice, that it completes and perfects
it ; it being the end of sacrifice to re-unite us to God
for his glory.

" 18. No man taketh it from me, but I lav it
down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I
have power to take it again. This commandment
have I received of my Father."

In the eighteenth place, the sacrifice of a good
pastor must be altogether voluntary. He is not
indeed master of his own life and death, as the sove-
reign Pastor was ; but he must be willing to lay
down his life, though he could preserve it. It was
entirely in the power of Christ to die or not to die,
as well as to rise again; and yet he delivered himself
up to death. This is the thing which renders his
love more worthy of our gratitude and our love.
He was sacrificed, because he was willing to be sacri-
ficed ; and he was willing, out of love to us, and out
of obedience to his Father. Admirable alliance this
of a free and voluntary obedience, arising from love,
with an absolute incapacity of disobeying. We shall
never resemble him in this respect until we come to

390 ST. JOHN.

heaven. Nineteenth, a pastor ought to have the
will of God continually before his eyes, and to join
the virtue of obedience to that of charity. His first
sacrifice is that of his will.

" 19. 5f There was a division therefore again
among the Jews for these sayings."

The more Christ endeavours to make himself
known, the more blind and obdurate the Jews become.
How many truths so sacred, necessary, and divine,
are ill received by men ! Grant, Lord, that I may
reap that fruit and advantage from them which the
Jews refused to reap. Let us, at least, frequently
adore in Christ this quality of being the good pastor
or shepherd, and this excessive love which caused
him to give his life for us. The more we have
strayed from the fold, the more ought we to love
him in the quality of pastor, and to have recourse
thereto in our wants. If we are thoroughly sensible
of them, we shall, without ceasing, offer up our prayers
to the good Shepherd, beseeching him to seek us,
to find us, to lead us, to carry us, to defend us, to
feed us, &c.

" 20. And many of them said, He hath a devil,
and is mad; why hear ye him? 21. Others said,
These are not the words of him that hath a devil :
can a devil open the eyes of the blind?"

Christ is now the third time treated as a demoniac
and a madman. What man is there who could bear
it even once without some emotion and complaint?
And yet, in the twentieth and last place, this usage
is what a pastor must expect to meet with in this
world, after abundance of toils and labours. The
reward of his instructions and of his zeal in preaching

CHAPTER X. 391

the truth, is to be despised, calumniated, and abused,
even for the truth's sake, as Jesus Christ was. If
the eternal wisdom, and the fulness of the divine
Spirit which dwells in Christ, did not secure him
from being treated as a person possessed by the devil,
as a madman, and as one not worthy to be heard ;
who then can presume to complain?

Sect. III. — Christ's Sheep hear his voice, and can
never perish. The rage of the Jews against him.

" 22. % And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the
dedication, and it was winter."

The feast of the dedication of a temple or church,
is one of those which ought to be kept most reli-
giously; and it is generally very much neglected in
some places, and in others most abominably profaned.
This is the feast of God's holiness, which is his
temple wherein he dwells (Psal. xxii. 3.), and where
he is separated from all the impurity of the creature.
Temples or churches are emblems of this eternal
temple, and of all the things which God consecrates
to himself, in order to reside therein by a particular
communication of his holiness; of the sacred human-
ity of the Son of God, that temple of the divinity,
consecrated by the divinity itself; of the Christian,
consecrated by the Spirit of God ; and lastly, of the
church of Christ, which is founded and built here on
earth, but the dedication of which will be performed
in heaven, where it will be entirely consecrated to
God by his holiness, no longer veiled, but shining
forth in all its majesty and glory. O divine Holiness,
grant me grace to perceive and adore thee; sanctify
me ; excite in me a lively sense of thy presence in

392 ST. JOHN.

churches, where thou art graciously pleased to com-
municate thyself to us ; and let their consecration
remind me always of my own.

" 23. And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solo-
mon's porch."

The walks of our blessed Saviour are not such as
proceed from idleness, irreverence, and irreligion,
accompanied with discourse of the same nature, and
such as we sometimes see in holy places, to the shame
of Christians, and even of the ministers of the church :
but they are profitable and religious walks, such as
tend to salvation. He is a pastor, who shows and
presents himself to his sheep, to feed them with the
word of God, and to edify them by his own example;
and who does all this not within the temple only, but
likewise when he is out of it.

" 24. Then came the Jews round about him, and
said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt?
If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly."

Impatience to know the truth proceeds sometimes
from a hatred thereof, and a design to persecute it.
This crafty, hypocritical, and malicious importunity,
is the effect of the greatest corruption of heart ;
whereas, a sincere, humble, generous, and fervent
zeal for truth, is a certain sign of great purity of
heart, and of a soul which aims at nothing but truth
itself. Why did these men persecute Christ for this
truth, if they knew nothing of it ? And if they did
know it, why do they pretend to be ignorant con-
cerning it? Thus many pretend, not to have suffi-
cient proofs of the divine Being, that they may not
be obliged to live according to his laws. Others
endeavour to render the truths of the gospel obscure,

CHAPTER X. 393

that they may excuse themselves from putting them
in practice.

" 25. Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye
believed not : the works that I do in my Father's
name, they bear witness of me:"

A Christian, and more especially a minister of
Christ, ought to speak more by his works than with
his tongue, in imitation of the example of his Head.
The injustice, ingratitude, malice, insincerity, and
insolence of the request which the Jews here made,
well deserved that Christ, to complete their blindness
and obduracy, should grant them that abundant light
which they asked with no other design but to destroy
him. Such a prayer as this made by wicked persons
is a new sin, and that which God grants thereupon
is a new effect of his judgment and his wrath.

" 26. But ye believe not; because ye are not of
my sheep, as I said unto you."

Those who are not of the flock, do not hear the
voice of the pastor. When a man's heart is open
to receive the word, it is an infallible sign that he
belongs to the truth : but he whose heart is shut
against it, has not in the least degree the mark and
character of a sheep, which is docility. It is by
faith that we become part of the flock, are united to
the Shepherd, and enter into the fold.

" 27. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them,
and they follow me :"

Here are three marks whereby we may know that
we are of the number of the elect sheep. The first
is, when the Son of God gives us a love, relish, and
obedience, in respect of his word. The second, when
he" seems mindful of our sanctification by the care

r 3

394 ST. JOHN.

which he takes concerning it. The third, when we
imitate his life and virtues. He who bears these
three characters to the end, is what we call a predes-
tinate person. By these we may judge, not with cer-
tainty indeed, but with confidence, that we are of the
happy number. But without these, to flatter our-
selves with any such thoughts is no other than pre-
sumption. Lord, open my heart to the gospel, that
I may love it; to thy saving hand, that I may sub-
mit to be guided by it; and to the example of thy
virtues, that I may follow it.

" 28. And I give unto them eternal life ; and
they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them
out of my hand."

Neither the devil, nor the world, nor concupis-
cence, can cause those finally to perish for whom God
has prepared eternal life, though they may cause them
to fall. That blessed life which God designs for his
elect, is a gift which he even now confers upon them
in conferring that of his grace, and in preserving them
from every thing which might otherwise occasion their
ruin. Woe to the presumption of man, if he pretend
to be more secure in his own hands, than in those of
his Saviour ! Woe likewise to that presumption, if
he expect that his Saviour will keep and preserve
him, without his own endeavours to preserve himself
from the snares of the devil, of the world, and of his
own will !

" 29. My Father, which gave them me, is greater
than all ; and none is able to pluck them out of my
Father's hand."

The elect are in the almighty hand of God : and
their Head, to whom they were given to be the

CHAPTER X. 395

members of his body, does himself possess the al-
mighty power of his Father, having received it from
him, together with his divinity, by his eternal birth,
and by his incarnation. This is the foundation of
our comfort and our confidence. That which secures
the salvation of the elect is, 1. That they belong to
Christ, out of whose hand no power is able to pluck
them. 2. That they are a gift which is irrevocable.
3. That they are the gift of the Father to his Son,
and therefore the gift of an infinite love. 4. That
they are the gift of a Father, who is greater and more
powerful than all created things together. And, 5.
That, by consequence, even the will of man (which
certainly is of the number of those things) cannot
withdraw itself for ever from God, when he has given
it to Jesus Christ for eternity : because grace, by
which he works in that will, is no other than the
operation of his own omnipotent will. I have this
confidence, O my God, that thou wilt always exert
thy power over my will, and that thou wilt not suf-
fer any creature whatever to separate me from thee.

" 30. I and my Father are one."

Ail religion is built upon this immovable founda-
tion, That he who has undertaken to save us and to
conduct us to God, is one and the same God with his
Father, though he be a person really distinct from
him. These truths, although they be common, are
notwithstanding infinitely above our reason. It is
our duty to adore them, to exercise our faith upon
them, and to return most humble thanks to Christ,
for that, being one with his Father from all eternity,
he is graciously pleased to become one with us to all
eternity.

396 ST. JOHN.

"31. % Then the Jews took up stones again to
stone him."

This is now the third time that the Jews have
attempted to cast Christ down headlong, or to stone
him. There would be but few preachers, could they
foresee, as Christ did, that they should frequently
meet with nothing but ill usage in the exercise of their
ministry. They are often discouraged at less ; and,
what is more deplorable, there is no occasion for so
frightful a prospect to make them change the truth
into lies and flatteries, and disguise the word of God
in a most shameful and scandalous manner.

" 32. Jesus answered them, Many good works
have I shown you from my Father; for which of
those works do ye stone me?"

Christ, being persecuted, justifies himself, to show
that his members ought to justify themselves on some
occasions. A mildness so extraordinary as this, in
return for such prodigious ingratitude and hardness
of heart, is a very instructive and powerful sermon
for preachers, and for all those who are treated ill for
the sake of truth. Christ did not always observe the
same conduct. He sometimes withdrew himself from
the like treatment, by becoming invisible; here he
preserves himself by the power of his word. Thus
the conduct of one holy person is very different from
that of another, even on a like occasion, though they
are both acted by the very same spirit. We ought
therefore to honour equally both the humble wisdom
of him who makes a prudent retreat, and the wise
constancy and resolution of him who maintains his
ground, and withstands the wicked to their face.

" 33. The Jews answered him, saying, For a

CHAPTER X. 397

good work we stone thee not, but for blasphemy;
and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself
God."

Abundance of persons desire and ask to be in-
structed, and then are scandalized and offended at the
truths which are taught them. Thus it is sometimes
that God, through a kind of mercy, leaves people in
their blindness ; because they would otherwise be-
come more wicked, and more worthy of punishment
by their blasphemies. Have we any reason to won*
der, that the most Gertain truths now delivered by
the lips of men, are frequently taken to be errors,
when we see that Jesus Christ himself was charged
with blasphemy, for declaring such truths as were
supported by all the power of the Spirit which was in
him, and confirmed by so many miracles?

" 34*. Jesus answered them, Is it not written in
your law, I said, Ye are gods? 35. If he called
them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and
the scripture cannot be broken; 36. Say ye of him,
whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the
world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the
Son of God?"

A priest is obliged to assert and maintain his char-
acter and mission, after the example of the sovereign
Priest of the Christian church. Though every priest
be admitted to a participation of the mission of Jesus
Christ, yet there is still an infinite difference betwixt
one who is only consecrated and sanctified by the ex-
ternal word of God, and him who is himself the con-
substantial and eternal word of the Father, who does
not sanctify him by any thing external or created, but
by himself. For, 1. He begets him in the fulness

398 ST. JOHN.

of his own sanctity or holiness. 2. He consecrated
and sanctified his humanity by the Divinity itself.
3. He ordained him to be the High Priest of his
religion. 4. He separated him from sinners, and
appointed him to be his own victim, holy in himself,
and sanctifying others. And, 5. He declared him
to be holy by a vast number of miracles, and by many
other proofs. — Christ insists on nothing but his sanc-
tity and his mission, in answer to the accusation of
blasphemy, to teach priests and pastors that nothing
so effectually disarms calumny and detraction as a
lawful call and mission, and a holy and edifying life.
Let us remember, after the example of Christ, that
we are holy in respect of our state and vocation ; but
withal, that our condemnation will be the more dread-
ful on this account, if we be not likewise holy in all
manner of conversation.

" 37. If I do not the works of my Father, believe
me not."

Since Jesus Christ himself was willing not to be
thought the Son of God, if men did not see in him
the works of his Father, let us not expect to be
looked upon as ministers or children of God, if we do
not show forth in our lives the works which become
such persons. A man's life and actions ought to
answer his profession. A minister of state talks of
nothing but of the interests of the government and
of the service of his prince : to these his whole life is
dedicated ; these are the end of all his actions. Such,
in proportion, ought a minister of the kingdom of
God to be, in respect of God, of Jesus Christ, and
of the church. A Christian, a clergyman, and one
devoted to the service of religion, ought to do none

CHAPTER X. 399

but Christian, ecclesiastical, and religious actions : for
even their most common actions should be heightened
and animated by the spirit of Christianity, of the
ministry, and of religion.

" 38. But if I do, though ye believe not me, be-
lieve the works; that ye may know and believe that
the Father is in me, and I in him."

A true pastor has no other design, throughout the
whole course of his life, but only to bring his sheep
to the knowledge of God and of Jesus Christ; and
to give birth, growth, and action, strength, perfec-
tion, and perseverance to their faith. Plain and
evident miracles are unexceptionable witnesses. A
man may disguise the truth of them, or pretend not
to see their force; but he cannot avoid being in-
wardly sensible of it. An atheist, an unbelieving
person, may give his heart the lie, and hinder it from
openly owning its conviction ; but he cannot entirely
suppress that conviction, nor rob himself of the evi-
dence of those proofs which arise from the wonderful
works of God, and from the miracles of Jesus Christ,
of his apostles, and of other holy persons. Let us
learn from Jesus Christ himself the adorable mystery
of the most blessed Trinity, according to which the
divine persons are in each other by the unity of one
and the same essence, will, and spirit. It is to the
imitation of this admirable unity that we are called
here on earth. It is in the consummation of this
unity that we shall find our eternal happiness in
heaven.

" 39. % Therefore they sought again to take him :
but he escaped out of their hand, 40. And went
away again beyond Jordan, into the place where
John at first baptized ; and there he abode."

400 ST. JOHN.

Truth confounds the wicked, but does not convert
them. Christ, by a just judgment, leaves these ob-
durate and impenitent wretches to themselves. When
a man sees plainly that there is no admission for the
truth, and that nothing but violence is to be expected,
his only way is to escape out of the hands of the
enemies of truth, that he may serve it in retirement
and prayer, and there wait for the accomplishment of
God's designs, for the judgments of his mercy or his
justice, and for the moment of his own consumma-
tion. That man continues in peace, and is undis-
turbed amidst troubles and persecutions, who fre-
quently calls to mind his baptism, and considers that
he was therein sacramentally and mysteriously cru-
cified with Christ, to no other end, but in order to
be really crucified with him by sufferings during this
life, and to die in them as he did.

"41. And many resorted unto him, and said,
John did no miracle:"

Miracles are not the things which denominate
men saints, since the greatest among them wrought
none; but they are such by charity and good works.
Miracles and prophecies are the proofs of an extra-
ordinary mission ; but St. John had no need of
either, having only the ordinary mission of prophets.
This saint, as the revived voice of all the prophets,
and the interpreter of their prophecies, points out the
end and accomplishment of them all in Jesus Christ;
and Christ confirms, authorizes, and verifies all, by
his word, his life, and his miracles. One of the best
means to be convinced of the truth of religion is, to
compare the miracles with the prophecies.

" — But all things that John spake of this man
were true. 42. And many believed on him there."

CHAPTER XI. 401

Christ seeks his elect in the midst of the repro-
bate; and it is for the sake of the former that he
exposes himself so often to the rage of the latter.
It is likewise for their sakes that he retires to a pri-
vate place, to favour their good disposition by remov-
ing them at a distance from their enemies, and from
all other obstacles. The faith of so great a number,
notwithstanding the rage and fury of those in power,
is a miracle of grace, and the end of all external
miracles.

CHAPTER XI.

Sect. I. — The Death and Resurrection of Lazarus,

" 1. Now a certain man was sick, named Lazarus,
of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha.''

The Son of God here gives us an emblem of the
fall, the conversion, and the justification of a har-
dened heart. To raise Lazarus, he made use only of
prayers and tears : but to restore to us the life of the
soul, it necessarily cost him the most precious life by
the most cruel death. Let us fill our hearts with
this truth in reading this history, which gives us a
lively representation thereof. Let us adore all the
different ends and designs our blessed Lord had in
working this miracle, as particularly that he might
give occasion to his sacrifice by the malice of his
enemies, that he might strengthen the faith of his
disciples against the scandal of the cross, that he
might represent to them his power in raising the
soul, &c.

" 2. (It was that Mary which anointed the Lord

402 ST. JOHN.

with ointment, and wiped his feet with her hair,
whose brother Lazarus was sick.)"

The memory of good works never perishes. They
draw down the graces of God upon sinners. One
person of piety in a family, is a treasure of more
value than the greatest riches : these may be the
occasion of eternal perdition to it ; that person, of
eternal salvation. This house is a figure of the
church, which is the house of prayer and of charity.
To pour out our heart before God in prayer, is to
pour out a perfumed oil upon our blessed Lord; and
to relieve the poor with alms, at least out of what is
superfluous to us, is to wipe his feet with our hair.
There is a mixture of several sorts of persons in the
church : there are Marys who pass their life in
prayer; there are Marthas who are continually era-
ployed in good works; and there are Lazaruses who
are sick and in a languishing condition. Some of
these actually die by the death of sin, and are raised
again by virtue of the tears, the prayers, and the
powerful word of Christ.

" 3. Therefore his sisters sent unto him, saying,
Lord, behold, he whom thou lovest is sick."

When Jesus Christ withdraws himself from a
soul, and leaves it to itself, it certainly falls into
temptation and sin. It is only to the prayers of the
church and of her children, that God grants the con-
version of sinners. In order to obtain this, such a
prayer is necessary as is full of faith, reverence, hu-
mility, and confidence ; which, without prescribing to
God, only lays before him the sinner's wants, and
what the infinite love of our blessed Saviour caused
him to do for our sakes. The conduct of these two

CHAPTER XI. 403

sisters exhibits to us the model of a Christian family,
which takes care to pray for all who are akin to it,
and yet has no regard to the relation of flesh and
blood, but considers only what the grace of Christ
has made them, and is concerned only for the dis-
eases of their souls, in consideration of him who has
redeemed them out of his exceeding love. A sin-
ner, who is sensible of his own unworthiness and
misery, ought frequently, after the example of these
two sisters, to address himself to Christ in this
manner, ' He whom thou lovest has sinned,' or is
tempted; an address very proper to support the sin-
ner's hope, to cover him with a salutary shame and
confusion, to implore the divine mercy more effec-
tually in his behalf, &c.

" 4. When Jesus heard that, he said, This sick-
ness is not unto death, but for the glory of God,
that the Son of God might be glorified thereby."

The infirmity, the death, and even the sins of the
elect, through the infinite mercy of God, turn to his
glory, to that of Jesus Christ, and to the salvation
of the sinner. God looks upon the diseases of men,
and upon the prayers which are made for their re-
covery, after a manner very different from the gene-
rality of relations, and of other persons. He has
no regard either to the temporal wants of the former,
or to the importunity of the latter; but considers
only his own glory, and their salvation. My God,
I am heartily willing that thou shouldst not hear
either my own prayers, or those which are offered up
for me, but only so far as is consistent with thy glory
and my salvation.

" 5. Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister,
and Lazarus.,,

404 ST. JOHN.

The love of Jesus Christ for his church and his
members, is the source of all his mercies. This love
is not like human affection, which is for securing the
objects of it as much as possible from diseases, afflic-
tions, and from death itself. lie suffers those whom
he loves most, to be exposed to all these like other
men ; but his love causes them to make a better use
of them. St. John makes mention here of this love,
to teach us that distempers are not always marks of
God's displeasure, and that we ought not upon their
account to imagine ourselves either neglected or for-
gotten by his providence, or deprived of the blessing
of his love.

" 6. When he had heard therefore that he was
sick, he abode two days still in the same place where
he was."

God frequently refuses to grant a less favour, in
order to confer upon us a greater. He permits sin,
that he may make the power of his grace and the
excess of his love more conspicuous in the conversion
of the sinner. It is through want either of know-
ledge or of power, that physicians do not save the
lives of their patients; but it is through a sovereign
wisdom) a perfect knowledge, and an infinite power,
that the Physician of our souls suffers his friend to
die: for he is able to restore him to life, and knows
what use he' purposes to make of the patient's death,
of which all other physicians can make no use at all.

" 7. Then after that saith he to his disciples, Let
us «o into Judea again."

It appears very plainly, that it was neither the
love of life, nor the fear of death, which caused
Christ to leave Judea, but only a design to suspend

CHAPTER XI. 405

the rage of the Jews by his absence, while he obe-
diently waited for the precise time appointed for his
sacrifice. That time is now approaching; and he
iroes into Judea again, as much to meet his own
death, as to restore Lazarus to life. He leads his
disciples thither, not to expose them to danger, but
to preserve them from it in such a manner as might
add strength to their faith, to give one of them an
opportunity to betray him, to make another an eye-
witness of his death, and, with all these mysterious
preparations, to celebrate that grand sacrifice, Sic.

"8. His disciples say unto him, Master, the
Jews of late sought to stone thee; and goest thou
thither again ?M

Life is of no account to him who thinks of no-
thing but doing the will of God, let the event be
what it will. That which is here done by our divine
Master, in order to raise a dead person, teaches his
ministers, that nothing ought to hinder them from
using their utmost endeavours to raise those souls
which God either particularly intrusts, or providen-
tially recommends to their care. If a minister on
such occasion is likely to suffer and to hazard his life,
it is upon his suffering perhaps, and his exposing
himself to every thing for the sake of a single soul,
that the salvation of this soul depends. The
apostles arc amazed at this forwardness of our blessed
Saviour; as if a true pastor could be long absent
from the chief place of his mission, and where the
designs of God concerning him require his residence.

" 9. Jesus answered, Are there not twelve hours
in the day? If any man walk in the day, he stumbleth
not, because he seeth the light of this world. 10.

406 ST. JOHN.

But if a man walk in the night, he stumbleth, be-
cause there is no light in him."

He who acts in the light, and by the grace of Jesus
Christ, is continually doing good ; without this grace
there is nothing but darkness and sin. While it
was day, that is, during the time of Christ's mortal
life allotted by his Father, his enemies had no power
at all over it: but when the time of night, namely,
of his death, was come, he delivered himself into their
bands. The will of God is the light by which we
ought to be guided. Nothing grievous can ever
happen to us, so long as we follow it. When we
walk without this light, in the night of our own will,
we cannot avoid either stumbling or going astray.
Let thy will, O Lord, be always the lamp which may
enlighten ray steps, and the light which may direct
me in thy ways.

6i 1J. These things said he: and after that he
saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but
I go, that I may awake him out of sleep."

Those who speak by the Spirit of God, use, even
in common masters, expressions which are instructive,
and which add light to the understanding. This
which our blessed Saviour here uses, teaches us,
that death is a kind of rest or sleep to the friends of
Christ ; that to the just man it is as desirable as rest
after the labours of the day ; that the hope of the
resurrection should make us despise death, which is
to last as it were no longer than the space of one
night ; that it is as easy to the Son of God to raise
a dead person, as it is to awaken one who is asleep;
that the disciples of faith ought to be accustomed to
the language of faith, which is useful to preserve and
revive the notions thereof in their minds, &c.

CHAPTER XI. 407

" 12. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep,
he shall do well. 13. Howbeit Jesus spake of his
death : but they thought that he had spoken of
taking of rest in sleep."

How could these men imagine that our blessed
Lord would undertake so dangerous a journey as
this, to no other purpose but to awaken a man out
of a common and even a healthful sleep ! This was
a very great instance of stupidity, and showed plainly
how sensual and carnal their minds still were. The
knowledge of this is very useful to convince incre-
dulous persons, that the apostles were not of them-
selves at ail capable either of converting the world,
or of inventing those wonderful things, and those
sublime discourses, which they relate. To make
use of metaphorical ways of speaking, which are very
common in the Scripture, and which deceive only
those who, through their own dulness, deceive "them-
selves, is not to be guilty of lying or falsehood,
when we take this method only in order to their
spiritual advantage, and leave them under their mis-
take but a very little time.

" 14. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus
is dead. 15. And I am glad for your sakes that I
was not there, to the intent ye may believe ; never-
theless let us go unto him."

That which here happened to Lazarus, is an em-
blem of God's withdrawing his grace, which is often
instrumental to the salvation of many, though it be
attended with the fall of a just person. All things
work together for good to the elect ; every thing
tends to promote their faith and their salvation, when
God is pleased it should be subservient to that end.

408 ST. JOHN.

He frequently permits the fall of some of them, on
purpose to strike the most holy with a salutary dread ;
to render those who fall more humble, vigilant, and
penitent; to edify the church by their repentance;
and to encourage the greatest sinners to have recourse
thereto. Christ could have cured Lazarus at a dis-
tance, his divinity being present in all places ; but
this was the proper time of honouring his human
nature as the instrument of his divine, to which it
was united in his person. He gently blames the
little faith of his apostles, that he may make them
more attentive to the miracle which he is going to
perform.

u 16. Then said Thomas, which is called Didy-
mus, unto his fellow-disciples, Let us also go, that
we may die with him."

These words of Thomas are very proper to be
used by a true disciple, always ready to die with his
Master, as a proper form wherewith he may encourage
himself to follow his example, and to expose himself
to every thing, depending upon his grace, and con-
forming himself to his holy dispositions, and to his
spirit of sacrifice. A priest who is filled with this
spirit, will, as he goes to the altar, with his mind
fixed upon Christ crucified, excite and animate him-
self by these words to unite himself to him, and offer
himself with him in sacrifice, in what manner soever
God shall please to dispose of him, of his life, his
repose, &c.

Sect. II. — Martha's Discourse with Jesus.

" 17. Then, when Jesus came, he found that he
had lain in the grave four days already."

CHAPTER XI. 409

A habit of sin is the grave of the soul : the soul
cannot come out of it without a miracle. There is
no sepulchre so loathsome and insupportable as the
conscience of an inveterate sinner, in which he has
buried himself alive. Christ was pleased that the
greatest of his miracles should be an emblem of the
conversion of such sort of sinners, to the end that
none of them might be without hopes from his mercy
to recover the life of his soul. He is able to raise
them all, let them have lain ever so long buried in
their vicious habits, because his^grqy and his power
have no bounds : but he actually raises very few, for
reasons which it belongs not to us to dive into ; and
perhaps too, because he would not have us take occa-
sion from thence to have less abhorrence of sin, and
to continue long in it with a false peace, by rashly
presuming upon the mercy of God.

" 18. (Now Bethany was nigh unto Jerusalem,
about fifteen furlongs off.) 19. And many of the
Jews came to Martha and Mary, to comfort them
concerning their brother. "

We condole with a person who has lost a brother
by death; but we do not compassionate a soul which
has lost its God by sin. Where is our faith ? Had
these comforters but looked into the grave of their
own heart, they would there have found souls more
dead than Lazarus, through their incredulity and
envy. Every one ought to search into his heart on
the like occasions. A man who is dead in sin, can-
not comfort himself any otherwise than by the hopes
of being converted, and by having recourse to God
to beg of him the grace of conversion, through Jesus

Vol. III. S 57

4 10 ST. JOHN.

Christ; for there is no other comfort or consolation
under the death of the soul.

" 20. Then Martha, as soon as she heard that
Jesus was coming, went and met him : but Mary
sat still in the house."

We must go to meet Jesus by our desires, we
must wait for him in retirement, with patience and
peace of mind. What a comfort must it needs be
to a poor sinner, when, by the first inspirations and
motions of conversion, and by a disgust for the world,
an aversion to its pleasures, and a clear sight of the
deformity of sin, he plainly perceives that Jesus
Christ is coming toward his heart ! Then is the
time for Martha to go to meet Jesus by works of
charity and a liberal distribution of alms; and for
Mary to continue still in the house, by prayer, medi-
tation, and recollection, and by searching into the
heart, to examine its most secret thoughts, inclina-
tions, and disorders.

"21. Then said Martha unto Jesus, Lord, if
thou hadst been here, my brother had not died."

Martha says nothing here but what is very con-
sistent with Christ's own words, (ver. 15.) Her ex-
perience of his continual goodness, her belief of his
almighty power, and the rule he seemed to have
prescribed himself, (of refusing no cures which should
be asked of him while he was present by his sacred
humanity,) persuade her, that he would have been
moved by the prayers and tears of her and her sister,
as well as by those of so many other persons. And
in this she judged rightly, for he wept at the sepul-
chre of Lazarus, though he shed no tears when he
first knew of his death.

CHAPTER XI. 411

" 22- But I know, that even now, whatsoever
thou wilt ask of God, God will give it thee."

The just person believes that God can work a
miracle at any time : but he does not always ask one,
because he does not know whether it may be useful
and expedient. Let us not tax this holy person
with want of faith, since Christ himself speaks even
to the same purpose, (ver. 41.) It is her faith in this
divine Mediator which causes her to speak in this
place ; as it is her belief of his divinity, which makes
her do it a little lower, (ver. 27.) Let us learn from
her, that we are to ask nothing of God. but through
Jesus Christ our only mediator; that we can obtain
nothing without him, and that by him we obtain
every thing; but that he gives as God whatever he
asks as God-man, as high priest, and as advocate
with the Father, in virtue of the rights of his divine
person and merits.

" 23. Jesus saith unto her, Thy brother shall rise
again."

How just soever the praise was which Martha
here gave to Christ, he takes no notice at all of it.
By making her a general promise, he gives her oc-
casion to reflect upon a resurrection much more de-
sirable than that which she desired for her brother.
God generally allows time for our too great earnest-
ness in seeking any temporal blessing to abate and
cool, that we may not receive it in the imperfection
of nature, but with the submission and purity of faith.

" 24. Martha saith unto him, I know that he
shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day."

The belief of a general resurrection was it seems
settled among the Jews by Scripture and tradition :

s2

412 ST. JOHN.

but it had been particularly confirmed in this family
by the instructions of the Son of God. The fidelity
of Martha in preserving in her heart this fundamental
truth, ought to excite us to reflect frequently upon it.

" 25. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection,
and the life : he that believeth in me, though he
were dead, yet shall he live : 26. And whosoever
liveth, and believeth in me, shall never die. Be-
lievest thou this?"

Christ, after his usual manner, takes occasion,
from the favour which is asked of him, to deliver such
truths as have relation thereto. There is no person
who has not some opportunities of imitating this zeal
and pastoral care. What Christ is, what he does,
and what he will do, are three foundations upon
which Martha ought to build the hope of her bro-
ther's resurrection. 1. He is the principle of all
resurrection and life in his members, being the life
by his divine essence and his eternal birth. 2. He
is the source of the resurrection from infidelity to
faith, by the inspiration of faith itself into the soul ;
and from sin to grace, by the infusion of charity.
3. He is the author and model of the resurrection
to a glorious and immortal life, by the communication
of his own. — It is by our believing these truths, that
we prepare ourselves to receive the accomplishment
of them. A sinner who desires the resurrection of
his soul, or the perfection of that resurrection, ought
to have a firm belief of the power of grace over his
heart.

" 27. She saith unto him, Yea, Lord : I believe
that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which
should come into the world."

CHAPTER XI. 413

The exercise of faith, which is the source of prayer,
is very often too much neglected. Christ recom-
mends it more than the exercise of other virtues,
because it is the seed of them. Nothing seems in-
credible or too great to be hoped for from Christ,
when there is a lively belief of his divinity ; but
when this foundation is shaken, the whole building
falls to the ground. The faith of Martha compre-
hends all in few words, and is a direct and full answer
to the question of Christ. It soars up to the very
bosom of the Father, the living God, the principle of
a living God, and who by this very Son is the foun-
tain of all life; and from thence it comes down again
into the world, to the virgin's womb, where Christ
was formed, by the union of the Son of God with
flesh, that he might become the head and the prin-
ciple of life to the children of God.

Sect. III. — Jesus groans, weeps, prays, cries out,
and raises Lazarus ; the Apostles unbind him.

" 28. And when she had so said, she went her
way, and called Mary her sister secretly, saying, The
Master is come, and calleth for thee. 29. As soon
as she heard that, she arose quickly, and came unto
him."

It is necessary that both Mary and Martha, both
the prayers and good works of the church, should
concur to the conversion of a sinner. It is to both
that Christ is pleased to promise and grant the re-
surrection to grace and glory. In this family, Christ
has no other name but Lord and Master, because it
is a family of faith and obedience, wherein nothing is
learned but Jesus Christ, and that from Jesus Christ

414 ST. JOHN.

himself, and nothing is done but what he commands
and desires. Happy is that Christian family which
resembles this ! Mary, without the least delay,
leaves those comforters who do but add to the weight
of her grief, and goes to seek the only true Com-
forter. It is only at his feet that we can find that
sovereign consolation which reaches even the heart.

" 30. Now Jesus was not yet come into the town,
but was in that place where Martha met him. 31.
The Jews then which were with her in the house,
and comforted her, when they saw Mary, that she
rose up hastily and went out, followed her, saying,
She goeth unto the grave to weep there."

This crowd of Jews know not that Christ was the
person who drew them to the place, and brings them
out of this house, to be witnesses, on the part of the
whole nation, of the last and most remarkable proof
of his mission. This will be a miracle of mercy for
some few; for the rest a miracle of judgment: to the
former it will be the last influence of grace to com-
plete and finish their conversion; to the latter, the
filling up of their measure, and, as it were, the seal
of their obduracy. We must pray on all occasions.
It frequently happens that people think they are only
going to make a visit of civility or curiosity, when
they are perhaps going to meet with that which will
decide their portion for all eternity.

" 32. Then when Mary was come where Jesus
was, and saw him, she fell down at his feet, saying
unto him, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother
had not died."

The feet of Christ are the usual retreat of Mary.
They are a throne of grace, and a sanctuary or refuge

CHAPTER XI. 415

both for the just and for sinners. Mary and Martha
use the same language, (ver. 21.); which represents
to us, that the prayers and good works of a Christian
proceed from the same faith in Christ, and produce a
firm confidence in him. Mary, well instructed in
the secret methods of Christ's conduct, knows that
he intends to act and work upon the hearts of men
by the presence of his Spirit, after his ascension into
heaven ; but that his abode on earth was designed to
make their bodies sensible of the power of his ador-
able flesh, aud of the quickening virtue of his sacred
humanity. These souls which are consecrated thereto,
do in a particular manner depend upon it for ail sorts
of graces. God honours his sacrifice, and shows us
before- hand that we have from thence the life of the
.body, as well as that of the soul. The soul commu-
nicates or partakes of this sacrifice in a manner pro-
per to itself, by receiving from thence its sanctifica-
tion and perfection ; and so will the body likewise
communicate or partake of it, in another manner, by
receiving its own perfection by the communication of
the glorious life thereof. The resurrection of Laza-
rus is a specimen, as it were, of this communion, and
of the communication of the life of Christ's body.

" 33. When Jesus therefore saw her weeping,
and the Jews also weeping which came with her, he
groaned in the spirit, and was troubled,"

The Jews here weep, and out of compassion bewail
a death in which they had no particular concern; and
yet are just going to murder, in a most barbarous
manner, the Author of Life himself. Thus we often
bewail the misery of others, and are altogether insen-
sible of our own. Christ, by his infinite power, takes

416 ST. JOHN.

upon himself all the impressions of human infirmity,
in order to sanctify them. He groans in the spirit,
when he considers the nature of sin, the consequences,
effects, and punishment thereof, which are pain and
death. The ill use which he foresees the Jews will
make of the miracle he is going to work, and a full
purpose of following his Father's order, in restoring
Lazarus to his sisters, raise in Christ this contest,
which causes him to groan in the spirit. He groans
in us, when faith excites in our minds a holy indig-
nation, and a salutary trouble on the account of our
sins, to that degree that the habit of sin yields to the
violence of our sorrow and repentance. Let us adore
in Christ these divine motions of human nature,
which in him have nothing but what tends to the
honour of God.

" 34. And said, Where have ye laid him ? They
say unto him, Lord, come and see."

Christ does not ask out of ignorance, any more
than God did, when he said, " Adam, where art
thou ?" Where is the sinner, when he is no longer
in the hands of his God ! To what a miserable con-
dition is he reduced, when by his sin he has taken
away the life of his soul ! The sinner forgets God,
and God forgets the sinner. If God vouchsafe not
to seek him, to come unto him, and to cast an eye of
mercy upon him, he will never seek his God, never
move one step toward him, and consequently never
find him. Here is an humble and efficacious prayer,
" Lord, come and see." A hardened sinner is a dead
person, not able so much as to ask for life; others
therefore must do it for him. Lord, come to this
soul which has forsaken thee, and see its misery.

CHAPTER XI. 417

Come to these inveterate sinners ; come to the sepul-
chre of their heart, and see how thy work is disfigured
by the corruption of sin.
" 35. Jesus wept."

Jesus weeps, and laments the death of all man-
kind, and the blindness of the Jews. By his tears,
1. He sanctifies ours. 2. He wipes them from our
eyes. 3. He dries up the fountain of them, which
is sin. 4. He expiates our vain and criminal joys.
And, 5. He procures us such as are substantial and
eternal. — Let us adore, unite ourselves with, and re-
turn most humble thanks to Jesus Christ weeping
for us. Thou, O Jesus, bewailest the sinner, and
the sinner does not in the least bewail himself! Let
thy tears be to him a source of penitential and Chris-
tian tears. Let me never, I beseech thee, lament
the loss of things which must perish ; but let me
lament the loss of thy grace and thy love, and of
every degree of both, which, through my own fault,
I have not received.

" 36. Then said the Jews, Behold how he loved
him !"

Men judge like men concerning the actions of the
Son of God, and seek for the cause of his tears in
friendship and natural tenderness. The God-man,
the Saviour of mankind, does nothing but what has
for its principle or motive the glory of God and the
salvation of men. These very people are themselves
the object of these sacred tears, while they seek the
cause of them in another person. Thus we fre-
quently attribute to others public or private calami-
ties, of which our own sins are the true cause. How
sweet, how comfortable is it, when we contemplate

s3

418 ST. JOHN.

Christ nailed to the cross, where he pours out not
only his tears, but even his blood, upon our souls, to
say, in the deepest sense of gratitude, " Behold how
he loved them !"

" 37. And some of them said, Could not this man,
which opened the eyes of the blind, have caused that
even this man should not have died ?"

Every thing is useful and advantageous to the
righteous; to the wicked, hurtful and prejudicial.
Envy turns the most wholesome things into poison.
When Christ works no miracles, these men insult
him ; and as soon as ever he has wrought this, they
do all they can to stifle and suppress the knowledge
of it. Blind censurers of the conduct of God, to
whose infinite wisdom they would prescribe rules !
Rash and presumptuous judges, who would fain
know the times and seasons, the disposal and know-
ledge whereof God has, by his sovereign power, re-
served solely to himself! The world is full of these
crafty and malicious insinuations, which tend either
to decry the best actions of holy persons, by hinting
at some passages of their former life, or to render
these odious, by comparing them with the lustre and
reputation of the other. So dangerous is it to give
any admission to envy, prejudice, hatred, &c.

" 38. Jesus therefore again groaning in himself,
cometh to the grave. It was a cave, and a stone lay
upon it."

The indignation which Christ conceived against
sin, envy, and the abuse of his favours, is the cause
of his groaning this second time. He lets it be just
perceived, without suffering it to break out; to teach
us, that we must often suppress within ourselves those

CHAPTER XI. 419

motions of indignation and zeal, which the sight of
the vices and disorders of men is apt to raise in us.
The heart of an obdurate sinner may very properly
be called his sepulchre, which, by means of a long
habit of sin, is shut and closed up against grace, as
it were by a hard and heavy stone, and in which
there is nothing but darkness and corruption. It is
a very great and extraordinary mercy when the de-
liverer comes to this prison, when the light shines in
this darkness, and holiness itself visits this corrup-
tion. Every person in the world has his stone of evil
habits, which is more or less hard and heavy, as these
are more or less inveterate and sinful. Lord, I feel
the weight and hardness of mine : vouchsafe to come
near it by thy grace, and to open this sepulchre.

" 39. Jesus said, Take ye away the stone. Mar-
tha, the sister of him that was dead, saith unto him,
Lord, by this time he stinketh : for he hath been dead
four days."

Our blessed Lord could have taken away the stone
by speaking only one word; but he does not think
fit to multiply miracles without necessity or without
use. It is necessary that men should work their part
towards their own salvation, and that they should en-
deavour chiefly to remove all outward obstacles, and
whatever serves to indulge their evil habits. This
is what depends most upon man ; for grace alone
changes the inward part, namely, the spring and bent
of a depraved will. Bad example is, as it were, the
stench of sin : it is very difficult to go near open and
inveterate sinners, without being infected by them.
It is a part of the duty of charity to advise others,
especially those who are innocent and know little of

420 ST. JOHN.

sin, to beware of them : but to conceal the danger,
for fear of wounding the reputation of such sinners,
is a false and irregular exercise of charity. Pastors,
whom our blessed Lord here represents, are not how-
ever, on this account, excused from going to sinners,
and doing all they can to procure the resurrection of
their souls: they must put their trust in the divine
protection, and proceed with the greater care and
caution.

" 40. Jesus saith unto her, Said I not unto thee,
that, if thou wouldst believe, thou shouldst see the
glory of God ?"

God proportions his liberality towards his servants
according to the measure of faith which he gives them
to deserve it. The difficulty there is in prevailing
upon an inveterate sinner to forsake his vicious habits,
causes us almost to despair of his conversion ; but it
is in surmounting this very difficulty that God places
his glory, even more than in working external mira-
cles. It is often our infidelity, or the weakness of
our faith, which hinders us from obtaining of God
the conversion of great sinners. We can hardly per-
suade ourselves to ask it at all, or we do it in a very
careless and negligent manner, because we do not
sufficiently rely upon the power of grace. To expect
only common and ordinary effects from it, is to have
but very little knowledge thereof. That which is
proportioned only to our narrow conceptions, is not
worthy of God.

"41. Then they took away the stone from the
place where the dead was laid. And Jesus lifted up
his eyes, and said, Father, I thank thee that thou
hast heard me."

CHAPTER XI. 421

Thankfulness for benefits received, draws down
new. It plainly appears that Christ had already-
prayed in the secret recesses of his heart, and thereby
prepared himself for this miracle. This is what a good
pastor ought to do, especially when he is to labour in
the conversion of some great sinner. Christ, being
about to conclude his public life and his preaching by
the last and most illustrious of his miracles, returns
solemn thanks to his Father, for the power given to
his human nature to prove the authority of his mis-
sion by miracles.

" 42. And I knew that thou hearest me always:
but because of the people which stand by I said it,
that they may believe that thou hast sent me."

Jesus Christ is always heard ; because, according
to his different natures, he is at the same time the
person who both makes and hears the prayer. A
pastor, whose duty it is to set a good example to
others, 1. Ought not always to pray in secret. 2.
He ought to have that familiarity with God by prayer,
(if that expression may be used,) and so much trust
and confidence in him, as to hope that he will grant
him his request. 3. He should show, by a perfect
disengagement from all worldly interest, his integrity
in undertaking the sacred ministry. 4. He should
manifest a very great dependence upon the Spirit of
God. And, 5. He ought to humble himself in the
sight of God, before he performs any act of power and
authority.

" 43. And when he thus had spoken, he cried
with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth."

The loud voice of our blessed Saviour is an em-
blem of his all-powerful grace, which is absolutely

422 ST. JOHN.

necessary to bring the sinner out of the sepulchre of
his hardened heart, and to make him confess his sin.
With how great difficulty does a man rise and recover
himself, when he has sunk under an evil habit, and
been as it were overwhelmed by it [ The sinner,
being at so vast a distance from God, has need that
God should speak to his heart in a very loud voice
to make him hear. Jesus Christ omitted nothing in
order to raise this dead person : he underwent the
fatigue of a journey, having come a great way to seek
him; he wept, he groaned, he prayed, he cried out
with a loud voice, and commanded the dead to come
forth. What ought not a pastor then to do, in order
to raise a soul as far as he is able, and especially a
soul which has been a long time dead !

" 44. And he that was dead came forth, bound
hand and foot with grave-clothes; and his face was
bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto them,
Loose him, and let him go."

He whom the grace of Christ has converted and
restored to life, must come forth as it were out of him-
self, by renouncing sin, and must leave the darkness
and corruption of his wicked habits. An habitual
sinner does not easily get clear of all those bands
with which he has bound himself, even though he
have received the life of grace. It is God who jus-
tifies him internally by his grace : it is the church
who looses him externally by her ministers. After
this, a wise and charitable director of the conscience
takes pains to free him from the difficulty he has
contracted of walking in the way of God's com-
mandments, and of performing good actions; and
assists him in renewing the image of God in his soul,

CHAPTER XI. 423

which he has defaced and blotted out thereof by his
sins.

" 45. Then many of the Jews which came to
Mary, and had seen the things which Jesus did, be-
lieved on him."

See here how profitable and beneficial it is to visit
virtuous persons, and to frequent their company. Sal-
vation sometimes depends upon such an opportunity
as this. A man meets with Jesus Christ in some
Christian family, he begins to know him there by the
works of his grace, and he receives at length the
precious gift of faith. To comfort the afflicted is a
work of mercy, which draws after it a blessing, pro-
vided it be done, not with a Jewish or Pagan, but
with a Christian heart.

Sect. IV. — The Jews take counsel together to
destroy Christ. Caiaphas prophesies.

" 46. But some of them went their ways to the
Pharisees, and told them what things Jesus had
done."

The devil finds means to make some advantage of
the most holy actions; and it seldom happens that he
has not his part in good works. He has his minis-
ters, who carry on his business in ruining themselves
eternally. There are always flatterers to be found
who make their court to persons in authority, by de-
crying virtuous men and their good actions. It is
a very hellish employment for a man to be a pro-
fessed accuser of God's elect, and to inform against
them for their holy actions, as others inform against
notorious villains for their crimes ; and yet some of
that employment are to be met with in the world.

424 ST. JOHN.

U 47. 51 Then gathered the chief priests and the
Pharisees a council, and said, What do we? for this
man doeth many miracles."

We always find the wicked intent on the destruc-
tion of others, without ever thinking of their own
salvation. Who would not have been apt to ima-
gine, that the governors of the Jewish church, and
the most religious sect among that people, assembled
together after such a miracle as this, were consulting
and deliberating only on the proper means of having
Christ acknowledged for the Messias, yielding at last
to such convincing proofs of his mission ? And yet
they are doing the direct contrary: under so thick a
darkness are these priests ! so strangely hardened
are the hearts of these Pharisees ! They here own
the miracles, which are an evident token of the di-
vine approbation : and yet they think of nothing but
destroying the person who wrought them. What a
dreadful instance is this of the extremities to which
men are insensibly led by prejudice, obstinacy, self-
interest, and the love of human glory !

" 48. If we let him thus alone, all men will be-
lieve on him ; and the Romans shall come and take
away both our place and nation."

Thus abundance of persons are mindful of nothing
but temporal things, entirely forget eternal, and so
lose both. Deplorable blindness this, for men to
think of taking precautions against God Almighty,
and against his designs ! Senseless reasoning ! as if
the faith of a people, to whom Christ preached a
morality so disagreeable to nature, could be any other
than the work of God; and as if he could be unable
to defend those who believed in him ! From the time

CHAPTER XI. 425

that passion has gained the ascendant in the mind, it
has no longer reason, good sense, or understanding;
but a wretched and fallacious policy takes their place.
It happens daily, that, in order to prevent some in-
considerable or imaginary evils, men plunge them-
selves into such as are real, and are attended with an
irreparable loss. Grant, Lord, that I may never be
of the number of those, who, either to gain or secure
some little temporal advantages or conveniencies, ex-
pose themselves to eternal misery.

" 49. And one of them, named Caiaphas, being
the high priest that same year, said unto them, Ye
know nothing at all, 50. Nor consider that it is
expedient for us, that one man should die for the
people, and that the whole nation perish not."

The public good will ever be the pretence with
which the ambitious and the covetous will endeavour
to conceal their wicked designs. These men dare not
say plainly, ' It is more expedient that truth, justice,
and innocence should perish, and that we should cru-
cify this worker of miracles, rather than lose our credit
and reputation, the esteem of the world, and all the
advantages arising from them., But they actually do
what they have not the confidence to speak. Let
worldly men but seriously examine themselves, and
they will find something of this nature in their own
conduct. They copy in miniature that original which
the Jews drew at full length.

" 51. And this spake he not of himself : but being
high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus should
die for that nation ;"

All those who foretell future events are not saints.
The priesthood, even in a wicked man, has virtue and

426 STY JOHN.

efficacy. God sometimes puts the greatest truths
into the mouth of a wicked man, that others may
neither be puffed up with their knowledge, nor think
themselves the holier on that account, nor attribute
to themselves those truths which come from God.
The very same words have an impious and sacrile-
gious meaning in the intention "of a wicked person;
and one which is religious, sound, and altogether di-
vine, as they were intended by the Holy Ghost. We
may therefore very justly seek after a sense which is
spiritual, mysterious, and edifying, in historical rela-
tions, and in words which, according to their common
signification, express nothing extraordinary.

" 52. And not for that nation only, but that also
he should gather together in one the children of God
that were scattered abroad."

The words of Caiaphas are a prophecy, not only
of the death of Christ, but also of the fruit and effect
of his death in the forming of his- church, which
is one, holy and universal. His death, breaking
down the wall of partition, gathers together Jews and
Gentiles into the unity of his body; destroying the
spirit of bondage, renders us the children of God by
the spirit of love, which produces holiness ; and bring-
ing in all nations to Christ, gives universality to his
church. How is it, that these blind wretches have
no eyes to perceive the power of him who forces them
to proclaim the glory of his kingdom, arising from the
faith of all nations, and from that very death which
they are contriving to inflict upon him, on purpose
to hinder all men from believing on him ! We can-
not sufficiently admire and adore the wisdom of God,
who thus confounds the false policy of men.

CHAPTER XI. 427

" 53. Then, from that day forth, they took counsel
together for * to put him to death." [* Fr. Thought
of nothing but.]

A strange employment this for the chief ministers
of the true religion, to whom the oracles of God
were committed, to entertain in their minds so detest-
able a design against their benefactor, even though
he had not been their God. Let us also think of
this design, and of this adorable death ; but let it be
in order to make it our life, in devoutly meditating
upon it, in applying to ourselves the fruits thereof by
a lively faith and a holy desire, and in imitating it by
the mortification of our heart and our senses. How
happy are Christian priests, who have this quicken-
ing death continually present to their minds; who
preserve the memory of it in the church by the re-
presentative sacrifice, which is the sacred memorial
thereof; and who convey the remembrance and effects
of it even into the hearts of the faithful, by causing
them to partake of that victim of salvation which was
sacrificed upon the cross !

" 54. Jesus therefore walked no more openly
among the Jews ; but went thence unto a country
near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim,
and there continued with his disciples."

It is the divine appointment, that we should de-
cline persecution, till a necessity of obeying God, or
charity for the souls of men, oblige us to appear.
Happy the country which affords a retreat to the Son
of God persecuted ! But more happy the heart which
opens itself to him whilst the world persecutes him,
which adores him, which is wholly taken up with
him, which fills itself with his word, which is nour-

428 ST. JOHN.

ished by his truth, and which continually excites and
quickens its faith and love by meditating upon his
mysteries. Ye worthy disciples of Jesus Christ, who,
by frequent retirement, follow him, as it were, into
the wilderness, who there continue united to him,
and, like him, wait there for the time of your sacri-
fice ; bless God for that happy lot and portion which
is fallen to you by his grace, while the world is in-
tent on nothing but to crucify the Son of God afresh
by their sins.

" 55. % And the Jews' passover was nigh at hand :
and many went out of the country up to Jerusalem
before the passover, to purify themselves."

How much more necessary is it for Christians to
purify themselves in order to celebrate the Christian
passover ! For want of due preparation to receive
the fruit of Christ's mysteries at this feast, it becomes
to a great number an occasion only of greater defile-
ment.

" 56. Then sought they for Jesus, and spake
among themselves, as they stood in the temple,
What think ye, that he will not come to the feast?
57. Now both the chief priests and the Pharisees had
given a commandment, that, if any man knew where he
were, he should show it, that they might take him."

The devil finds means of ruining souls on the
greatest festivals, which were instituted for their sanc-
tification. For whereas some, in order to this end,
seek Christ at such seasons, others do it only to cru-
cify him in their hearts by the commission of new
sins. My God, what numbers are there, in respect
of whom Christ does not come to the feasts of the
church by his grace and his Spirit, though they then

CHAPTER XII. 429

receive even his representative body and blood ! But
how tew are there, who are at all sensible of his
absence, and who put this question to themselves,
" What is the cause that he is not come to the feast?"
Is it not on the account of that sinful habit, which
we always confess, but never forsake ?

CHAPTER XII.

Sect. I. — Mary anoints the feet of Christ. Judas
murmurs at it. The Jews consult to kill Lazarus.

" 1. Then Jesus, six days before the passover,
came to Bethany, where Lazarus was which had been
dead, whom he raised from the dead."

A good pastor, whose labours to procure the resur-
rection of a soul God has blessed with success, ought
not presently to leave it, but he must visit it, and
watch over it, to assist it in preserving the life of
grace. It is chiefly before Easter that he ought to
inquire and examine, whether those under his care
be duly prepared to celebrate the sacred banquet, and
to approach the holy table. When a pastor finds
himself near his end, his concern for the souls which
he has newly taken off from their evil habits, or which
he has brought near to God, as it were, begins afresh;
and he applies himself to them in a particular man-
ner, endeavouring to strengthen and confirm the for-
mer, and to advance the progress of the latter. What
then ought we not to believe concerning the pastoral
charity of Christ, who never visited any but for their
advantage ?

" 2. There they made him a supper; and Martha

430 ST. JOHN.

served : but Lazarus was one of them that sat at the
table with him. 3. Then took Mary a pound of
ointment of spikenard, very costly, and anointed the
feet of Jesus, and wiped his feet with her hair ; and
the house was filled with the odour of the ointment."

The true house of obedience, signified by the word
Bethany, is the church. It is there that Jesus Christ
sups with his friends, where an active charity, which
is mindful of the wants of others, serves him in his
members; where sinners raised to life, and purified
by repentance, sit at the table with him; and where
a contemplative charity, devoted to God and Christ,
pours out its faith, religion, prayers, and its whole
soul in his presence, and at the same time its alms
upon the poor, making use of temporal riches to wipe
off their tears, and to alleviate their wants and mise-
ries. These perishing things are in the nature of
hair, to be cut off in proportion as they grow and in-
crease, that we may not make ourselves a vain orna-
ment, or a superfluous burden of that which is neces-
sary for others.

" 4. Then saith one of his disciples, Judas Isca-
riot, Simon's son, which should betray him, 5.
Why was not this ointment sold for three hundred
pence, and given to the poor?"

Wretch, who is just going to sell the only Son of
God for thirty pence, and values at three hundred a
little ointment, perfume, and vapour ! When a man
has once delivered up his heart to sin, he makes small
account of Jesus Christ. All divine things become
vile and contemptible to him who does not weigh
them in the balance of faith. A covetous person
counts every thing lost which is not sacrificed to his

CHAPTER XII. 431

avarice. This vice frequently covers itself with the
pretext of charity, and cannot endure that any thing
should be expended for the service of God. Good
works are often an occasion of murmuring to those
who are possessed with the spirit of the world : we
must give them leave to talk, and go on ourselves in
the performance of our duty.

" 6. This he said, not that he cared for the poor;
but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare
what was put therein."

Christ trusts a thief with his money, because he
sets no value upon it; but he keeps souls in his own
custody, and redeems them with his blood, because,
having received them of his Father, he values them
more than all the world besides. He suffers his
money to be stolen from him, but never his sheep.
What a shame is it for so many of those to whom
he has entrusted them, to leave them to perish for
want of due care; while they themselves are entirely
taken up with temporal affairs, and eagerly intent on
the improvement of their revenues ! Our blessed
Lord shows us by his own example, that it is not in-
consistent with a life of perfection to have some small
reserves of money in common ; but that the care and
management thereof is not to be given to the most
perfect. Would to God that those who enjoy ec-
clesiastical benefices, and are on that account the
stewards of the poor, would always be mindful of
that quality and condition, and employ their reve-
nues as faithful stewards; and not, like Judas, make
use of the name of the poor in so loud a man-
ner, when some little temporal interest is concerned,
or the repairing of their churches issthe thing in
question.

432 ST. JOHN.

" 7. Then said Jesus, Let her alone : against the
day of my burying hath she kept this."

What mildness and gentleness was this towards
a wretch who was a vile hypocrite ! Christ suffers
him to deceive him as far as it lay in his power, to
lie unto him, and to steal from him. Men are never
willing to suffer any thing of this nature. He makes
no discovery of the avarice of Judas : whereas men
seldom spare their own brethren the shame of their
vices, when it is at all for their interest to discover
them. Love is of a foreseeing and preventing na-
ture. The love of the Father towards Jesus Christ,
causes men to pay him beforehand, at the time of his
entry into Jerusalem, the honour of a triumph, for
the victory he was just going to gain by his death
over death itself, over sin, the world, and the devil.

The love of Christ towards his chur"v u »' r

■nQ nature of

anticipate his own death bv v >y grow and in-
eucharist, whichrfigurativ- ^eg „ _;n Qm^

for us. And the lov

causes her to give nim beforehand the hononr of
embalming and burial.' by the ministry of Mary, by
whom she is represented. ThVdesign of Mary is
to honour her Saviour's sacred humanity as the source
of the life of her own soul, and of that of her brother's
body. The design of the Holy Ghost is to prefigure
the death and burial of Christ, and to do honour to
them by way of anticipation. Thus the ceremonies
of the law did, by the sole intention of the Holy
Ghost, admirably well signify some future mysteries :
and many ceremonies of the Christian church contain
under them, and represent Christian mysteries, truths,
and virtues, not by the mere design of those who in-

CHAPTER XII. 433

stituted them, but chiefly by the intention of the
Holy Spirit, who directs every thing in the church.
We ought to be very careful to resign ourselves up to
this Spirit, in order to penetrate into his gracious pur-
poses, and to co-operate with his designs.

" 8. For the poor always ye have with you ; but
me ye have not always."

Mary's love teaches her how to improve the op-
portunity of Christ's presence to her own benefit
and advantage: we shall likewise improve it to ours,
in proportion to the love we bear him. We never
fail of finding him in the poor. We have him
always present in the pastors, to pay him the duty of
obedience; in his word, to follow his light: but we
have him not always present in a visible manner, to
pay him the honour due to the Son of God living
What a si,~ "n* Every duty has its proper time and
he has entrusted 1r"s not interfere with another,
want of due care: ulates $\e order of them in

§ with ,an inclination to
some. particular exefcciafc^ and uevotions, and others
he directs to follow a dilfercn . method, thus dividing
his gifts to eveiy' one severally as he will.

" 9. ^f Much people of the Jews therefore knew
that he was there; and they came not for Jesus' sake
only, but that they might see Lazarus also whom he
had raised from the dead."

Jesus had hitherto always declined appearing
much in the company of those whom he had cured
miraculously, when the receiving of honour and ap-
plause could be the only consequence thereof: now
he chooses to appear in such company, and draws
together much people of the Jews, because this

Vol. III. T 57

434 ST. JOHN.

miracle is to cost him his life, and because the time
of his sacrifice is come. To be earnestly desirous to
see the works of God, is a very commendable curi-
osity ; but it is a very ill disposition to be satisfied
with barely seeing them, and not to glorify God on
their account by all the ways in our power, every one
according to his state and his measure of grace.

" 10. But the chief priests consulted that they
might put Lazarus also to death; 11. Because
that by reason of him many of the Jews went away,
and believed on Jesus."

Few persons seek Christ for his own sake ; many
do it out of curiosity, and others out of malice.
Happy are they who come and give themselves to
him, by whatever motive they were induced,! But
miserable are those who make no other use of the
knowledge of his wonderful works, but only to set
themselves at a greater distance from him ! How
impious, rash, and extravagant soever this design be
of putting Lazarus to death, because his resurrection
was the work of Christ, it has notwithstanding some
imitators in a different way. There are even Chris-
tians who endeavour to destroy such works as are
manifestly of God and for his sake ; and he, for their
misery or punishment, suffers their designs to suc-
ceed; which he did not do with respect to the Jews
in their design upon Lazarus. Nothing but the
very spirit of the devil, and an envy which is truly
his, can prompt men to do all they can to subvert the
works of the Holy Spirit, merely out of hatred to
those whom he has been pleased to use as his in-
struments, and because these works gain them re-
putation, and are prejudicial to the worldly glorv and
carnal interest of such envious wretches.

CHAPTER XII. 435

Sect. II. — Christ's Entry into Jerusalem.

" 12. ^f On the next day much people that were
come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was
coming to Jerusalem, 13. Took branches of palm-
trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried, Ho-
sanna: Blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in
the name of the Lord."

All the chief priests and magistrates, those who
make the greatest figure and appearance, have their
minds wholly taken up with their malicious designs
against our blessed Lord, and are intent on finding
out some means to rid themselves of him : on his side
he has only one part of the common people, who came
from abroad. This affords us an emblem of that
which happens in all ages, in which the common
people have always shown most sincere affection to-
wards Christ and his gospel. The zeal and affection
of those who are not yet rooted and grounded in
love, are of short duration; and the glory which the
world bestows? is but like a flash of lightning. It
was to our blessed Lord a fresh occasion of sorrow,
because he knew the inconstancy of these people.

" 14. And Jesus, when he had found a young
ass, sat thereon; as it is written, 15. Fear not,
daughter of Sion : behold, thy King cometh, sitting
on an ass's colt."

Let us not disdain to learn from hence that tract-
ableness, humility, and meekness, with which we
must receive and bear the yoke of Christ. In
showing the Jews how easily he could have drawn
the people to him if he had thought fit, he likewise
shows Christians with how much power and gentle-

t 2

436 ST. JOHN.

ness be would effectually draw* to him all nations.
He leaves pomp and magnificence to earthly kings;
they stand in need of it to hide and conceal their
weakness. Humility and simplicity compose the
whole equipage of a King, whose only design is to
encounter pride, and to triumph over sin and death.
Fear not, O people of the Jews, oppressed with the
weight of legal ceremonies, this King comes not
amidst the terrors of thunder and lightning, to im-
pose upon you the insupportable yoke of a law of
fear and death ; he comes to bless you with a law of
life and love, which is received only in proportion as
it is loved, and which, with a most winning gentle-
ness, engages us to love and embrace it. Reign in
me, O Lord, by causing me to love thy law.

" 16. These things understood not his disciples
at the first : but when Jesus was glorified, then re-
membered they that these things were written of
him, and that they had done these things unto him."

The resurrection and glory of Jesus Christ en-
lightened the eyes of his disciples, which the in-
firmities of his flesh had dimmed and weakened.
When a man is intrusted with the instruction of
others, he must not be discouraged by their slowness
of apprehension, but must proceed in the discharge
of his duty : God, in his due time, will open the un-
derstanding of those in whom he designs his word
shall bring forth fruit. We often read the Scrip-
ture, without comprehending any thing of the mys-
tical senses which it' contains : let us notwithstanding
adore it, continue to read it, and wait with patience.
The light will at last shine out, will disperse this
darkness, and remove the veil which hinders us from

GHAPTER XII. 43'7

seeing Jesus Christ and his mysteries in the divine
oracles. Grant me, Lord, I beseech thee, a perse-
vering love of thy word; and let the sacred obscurity
thereof, instead of lessening my veneration for it,
increase and heighten it.

" 17. The people therefore that was with him
when he called Lazarus out of his grave, and raised
him from the dead, bare record. 18. For this cause
the people also met him, for that they heard that he
had done this miracle."

In vain do men use their utmost endeavours to
drown the voice of God speaking by miracles : it is
impossible to frustrate his designs. Christ does not
now withdraw himself from the concourse and ap-
plause of the people ; because he knows in what it
will all end. He now receives their praises, and the
marks of their esteem, while he is under the expecta-
tion of ignominy and reproach; as he will in a very
little time receive humiliation in hopes of glory.

" 19. The Pharisees therefore said among them-
selves, Perceive ye how ye prevail nothing ? behold,
the world is gone after him."

The greatest miracle of Christ is that which ex-
asperates his enemies the most. They resolve upon
his death for an action which ought to convince them
that he is the resurrection and the life. When the
first motions of envy and hatred are not restrained,
it is at last impossible to keep them within bounds.
The plain and evident fruitlessness of all their en-
deavours, transports these men into rage and despair;
but does not in the least alter their purpose. They
discover, even against their will, the bottom of their
hearts, and the true occasion of their envy : they

438 ST. JOHN.

would have had the world gone after them, and they
see it is gone after Christ. How much reason have
we to fear, lest we should run into the like excess, if
we love the praise of men, and should happen to
stand in competition with others ! A reputation to
be supported and maintained, is a dangerous snare to
those who have but a small degree of love for God.

Sect. III. — Some Gentiles desire to see Jesus.
The grain is barren except it die. Life must be
lost to save it.

" 20. 5f And there were certain Greeks among
them that came up to worship at the feast : 21. The
same came therefore to Philip, which was of Beth-
saida of Galilee, and desired him, saying, Sir, we
would see Jesus."

It is a privilege peculiar to the Christian church,
that out of her bosom there is no salvation nor re-
ligion. God had some worshippers out of the syna-
gogue, whom he had reserved to himself, and kept
undefiled amidst the corruption of paganism, to mani-
fest the power of his grace, and to hinder the devil
from pleading a sort of prescription against the rights
of the Creator. In proportion as the Jews shut the
door of salvation against themselves, the Gentiles
begin to knock at that door, which is Jesus Christ.
This temple to which these came to worship, is no
more than a type or shadow of the church, into
which they are shortly to come in crowds to acknow-
ledge the true God ; and this desire to see Jesus, is
the first-fruits of that ardent thirst which the Holy
Ghost will raise in them after the faith in Jesus
Christ. How adorable are thy counsels, O my

CHAPTER XII. 439

God ! how divinely terrible in this vicissitude of grace
and religion, &c. !

"22. Philip cometh and telleth Andrew: and
a^ain Andrew and Philip tell Jesus."

How pleasing to God is this union, when the
ministers of his church agree, and, as it were, con-
spire together, to bring souls to Christ, and to in-
struct them in the truths of his religion ! True dis-
ciples have no notion of envy and emulation, and of
any forwardness to show their own credit and in-
terest in preference to others ; because they seek not
their own glory, but that ol their common Master.

" 23. % And Jesus answered them, saying, The
hour is come, that the Son of man should be glo-
rified."

Christ is sought to with Zealand earnestness, and
yet he makes no manner of advances toward those who
appear to have so great an esteem and value for him.
The children of Adam take much more care to im-
prove ail opportunities which are favourable to their
self-love, and to answer the good opinion of others,
by giving them such a reception as may preserve and
increase it. It is not only the humility of Christ,
which causes him to act in this manner, but also his
wisdom. He shows no affection towards the Gentiles,
that he may not provoke the Jews. When a man
is in some eminent station, and exposed to the cen-
sures of others, he ought to take great care that he
be not drawn into any wrong measures by a false ap-
pearance of good. The glory of Christ is the mani-
festation of his name to all nations, and the callincr
of them to the faith : and yet he speaks but very ob-
scurely concerning it, that he may show, even to the

440 ST. JOHN.

last, some regard towards those who act without the
least towards him.

" 24. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a
corn of wheat fall * into the ground and die, it
abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth' much
fruit." [* Fr. Be cast.]

Christ and his members bring forth fruit only by
mortification and the cross. Jesus is the bread of
the elect, but he is wheat before he becomes bread;
and he is a corn of wheat in respect of his seeming
smallness, his solidity, and his virtue to nourish and
satisfy. Let us adore this corn of wheat, which be-
ing cast, by the incarnation, into the field of this
world, as the seed of the elect and of the whole church,
and being dead and buried in the earth, sprung up,
and brought forth much fruit, by his resurrection and
ascension ; and is to be the eternal food of his church
in heaven, after having fed her under the symbols of
bread here on earth. Whoever desires to belong to
the harvest, must be likewise of the seed. Who-
ever would be an ingredient of this heavenly bread,
ought to prepare himself first to be a grain of wheat,
cast into the earth by humiliation, buried by the ob-
livion or contempt of the world, winnowed in the
floor, and bruised under the mill-stone, and to pass
through the water and fire of affliction, tribulation,
and repentance. A pastor or minister of Christ has
no reason to hope that he shall be able to produce
much fruit, if he be not mortified, and disposed to
suffer, and to give even his life for his sheep and
for the church. When persecution takes away a
holy pastor, his flock seems, in all human appearance,
to have lost all ; but to the eyes of faith it appears

CHAPTER XII. 441

in a very hopeful and prosperous condition. The
corn of wheat is dead; there is good cause to hope
that it will bring forth fruit.

" 25. He that loveth his life shall lose it; and
.he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it
unto life eternal."

The inordinate love of the present life, and of the
conveniencies thereof, extinguishes, in the generality
of mankind, the belief and love of life eternal. Few
persons examine themselves concerning their love of
life; and yet Jesus Christ assures us, that there is
one kind of this love which is the occasion of eternal
death. We love life in the sense here intended,
when we are fond of it for its own sake, and for the
sake of the carnal satisfactions and temporal advan-
tages which accompany it. Let us carefully avoid
being desirous to preserve it on this account, and to
enjoy it to the prejudice of what we owe to God,v to
the church, and to our own salvation. This would
be no other than to invert the proper order of our
love; to prefer the creature to the Creator, the flesh
to the Spirit, temporal things to eternal ; to use the
gift contrary to the intention of the giver, and to
make the end subservient to the means. There is
now very seldom any opportunity of martyrdom,
which is the highest proof of that love which prefers
God before all things: but a Christian finds an op-
portunity of giving this proof in a life of mortifica-
tion ; and a pastor in the labours of his ministry,
which separate him from the pleasures of life, which
cause him to sacrifice it to God, to the church, and
to the business of salvation, and often shorten the
course of it. How happy is it to lose it thus for a

t3

442 ST. JOHN.

moment, since it is to keep it for eternity — as the
way to love it in reality, and in God's account, is to
hate it for his sake !

tl 26. If any man serve me, let him follow me ;
and where I am, there shall also my servant be : if
any man serve me, him will my Father honour."

Here are three motives which ought to induce a
Christian to despise life, and to reconcile him to la-
bour and mortification. The first is, the obligation
under which he lies to imitate the Master to whom
he has engaged his service, and to follow him in all
things. In vain does any man flatter himself with
the imagination that he serves Christ, if he do not
follow his example, if he do not love what he loved,
and despise what he despised. The second motive
to the contempt of life, and to the love of labour and
mortification, is the hope of following Christ into
glory, and of partaking of his reward. A prince
who is to ascend a throne, men are ready to follow,
wherever he goes, and at the expense of every thing
— what would they not do, if they entertained any
hopes of ascending it with him, as Christ has pro-
mised they shall who follow him ! Had we but a
firm and lively faith in this promise, we should then
likewise have this hope ; and this hope, like an an-
chor of the soul both sure and steadfast, would keep
our hearts and desires fixed upon the eternal posses-
sions of that heavenly kingdom. The third motive
to persuade us to despise life, and to apply ourselves
to labour and mortification, is, because the Father
will crown all those with honour and glory who have
followed his Son, and will even receive them as his
children. What master should we not be willing

CHAPTER XII. 443

to serve on this condition, in hopes of dividing the
inheritance with his children, even though we had
no other security than the deceitful word of a worldly
man ? Lord, let thy infallible word have that in-
fluence upon ray heart which it ought to have; and
do thou cause me to rely upon thy promises without
the least doubt or hesitation. They surpass indeed
all human comprehension — but thou also art infi-
nitely above the reach of every human understanding.
It is a God who loves us, and who loves us with
the tenderness of a father, because he loves us in
his Son; and nothing can set bounds to his love, or
to the gifts which he designs to confer upon his
children.

Sect. IV. — The inward trouble of Christ. A
Voice from Heaven. The power of the Cross.
We must walk while ive have the Light.

" 27. Now is my soul troubled ; and what shall
I say ? Father, save me from this hour : but for
this cause came I unto this hour."

Few Christians ever apply their minds to adore
in Christ this part of his inward sufferings. He
shows us in his own person, that, in order to hate
life in the sense designed above, it is not necessary
that we should be altogether insensible of the natural
dread of death. Christ, by being thus troubled at
the very bottom of his soul, and under a kind of un-
certainty what resolution to take, informs us to our
comfort, that it is the disposition and choice of the
will, not the affections of nature, which God consi-
ders in us, and by which he will judge us. Christ
is sensible in himself of the infirmities of our nature;
but it is by his power that he suffers them to make

444 ST. JOHN.

any impression upon himself. We must not con-
ceal from souls the difficult and rugged ways of per-
fection, but support and encourage them therein by
his example. The infirmities which the strong some-
times feel but for a moment, serve to comfort and
fortify the minds of the weak. Whenever the dread
of the cross and of death dejects us, we ought, after
Christ's example, to address ourselves to God in
prayer, to adore his purposes and designs, and to
make an absolute submission of nature to them.

" 28. Father, glorify thy name. Then came
there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glo-
rified it, and will glorify it again."

The great means to obtain and enjoy peace of
mind, is to seek nothing in life and death but the
glory of God alone. To be in this happy disposi-
tion upon unforeseen occasions, is the fruit of a holy
life. The troubles and anxieties of faithful souls
end at length, in leaving God to choose that for them
which he shall judge most conducive to the glory of
his name. This is what we must always do in the
time of sickness, under any danger of death, and in
all difficult circumstances which trouble and perplex
the mind. The way to be always heard, is to ask
nothing of God but his will, and that which tends
most to his glory. Christ finds his own glory in
that of his Father, as in its ultimate end. The Fa-
ther finds his in that of his Son, as in the general
means and instrument which he has chosen to estab-
lish it, by the forming of his church, by the calling
of the Gentiles, by miracles, &c.

" 29. The people therefore that stood by, and
heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An
angel spake to him."

CHAPTER XII. 445

How very unusual a thing is it to know the voice
of God perfectly, especially amidst the noise and
hurry of the world ! It does not belong to every
one to distinguish it, and to judge of it. We must
at least take great care, that we do not pretend to
do it rashly and inconsiderately.

" 30. Jesus answered and said, This voice came
not because of me, but for your sakes."

Every thing is for the elect. To apply to our-
selves in particular, that which is spoken in general
to all persons, is the sure means to profit by the word
of God. This voice, this truth is for us, since it
directs us into the way of our salvation. It is certainly
for us, if we make a good use of it : it is against us,
if our lives be not answerable thereto. The nearer
our blessed Lord's sacrifice approaches, the more
does God prepare and dispose things for it, and pre-
vents the scandal of the cross by the highest testi-
monies of his approbation.

" 31. Now is the judgment of this world : now
shall the prince of this world be cast out."

Is it not rather, on the contrary, the world which
is going to judge the Son of God, and the prince of
this world who is going to triumph over the Saviour
thereof, and to cast him out of it by death? This
seems to be true to the eyes of the flesh — but to the
eyes of faith the former is so. What comfort and
consolation do these words afford to righteous per-
sons, when oppressed by carnal men ! When they
sink under their injustice, then it is that they become
their judges; and when they are reduced by them
to the last extremity, then are they victorious, and
triumph over them. My God, how differently does

446 ST. JOHN.

the world appear, to those who live by faith, and
to those who live by sense ! In time of temptation,
the safest way to arm ourselves against the world
and the devil, is to do it with faith, and with the
contemplation of Christ's death and passion ; since
it was by these that they were overcome. The most
heinous and flagitious attempt of the devil, is the end
of his reign : it is often the same case with respect
to wicked men.

" 32. And I, if I be lifted up from the earth,
will draw all men unto me. 33. (This he said, sig-
nifying what death he should die.)"

The cross is not only the tribunal on which Christ
judges the world, and pronounces the sentence of
condemnation upon the devil; it is likewise the throne
of his mercy towards sinners, the source of all bless-
ings, the cause of our deliverance, the instrument of
our salvation, and the meritorious original of an
almighty grace, by which he draws all men unto
him. Nothing yields greater comfort to Christ,
under the dismal prospect or* his sufferings and death,
than to consider that the salvation of sinners is to
be the fruit thereof. Let but pastors be .zealous for
the salvation of souls, and they will count all labours,
pains, and even the loss of life itself, as nothing. It
is one of their duties, by frequent prayers to beseech
Christ, who draws all men to him by his cross, that
he would be pleased to draw sinners to him, and
overcome all the resistance of their hearts by the
power of his death. O Jesus, lifted up upon the
cross for my sins, to thee I offer my heart upon it ;
lift it up to thyself, and place it out of the reach of
all earthly things !

CHAPTER XII. 447

" 34. The people answered him, We have heard
out of the law that Christ abideth for ever : and how
sayest thou, The Son of man must be lifted up?
who is this Son of man ?" '

Faith easily reconciles those seeming contradic-
tions which the mind of man discovers in the mys-
teries of Jesus Christ, and in the life of his members.
The law foretells and declares the humiliations and
death of the Messias, as well as the magnificence
and eternity of his reign : but self-love stops at that
which flatters its vanity and tenderness, and passes
by whatever is not agreeable to its carnal notions
and inclinations. Men are very unwilling to be
acquainted with that path which leads to glory by
ignominy, and wherein they must die in order to
arrive at immortality. But, O Saviour of the world,
who can refuse to take this path, since thou thyself
hast walked therein ! To read the Scriptures with
a carnal and unmortified heart, is a very great ob-
stacle to the understanding of them. We shall
plainly perceive the cross in all parts of them, if we
love it : it is the cross which takes away the veil of
the law, and opens our minds to understand mysteries.

" 35. Then Jesus said unto them, Yet a little
while is the light with you : walk while ye have the
light, lest darkness come upon you ; for he that
walketh in darkness knoweth not whither he goeth."

Without the true light, which is Jesus Christ,
what can we do but wander, fall into the snares of
the enemy, go off still more and more from our centre
and chief end, stumble, hurt ourselves, meet with
frequent falls, and at last tumble down the precipice ?
We often depend upon the present light we enjoy

448 ST. JOHN.

as much as if it were either our due, or at our own
disposal ; and perhaps it is this very thing which will
bring darkness upon us. If we desire to preserve
the light, let us dread the loss of it. A traveller,
who is apprehensive that the day is drawing to an
end, ought to mend his pace, and to hasten forward
as fast as he can. It is not enough for our security,
that darkness do not come upon us whilst we are
doing ill : it is enough to ruin us, if it should over-
take us either doing nothing at all, or not doing all
we ought to do. Not to walk, not to advance, is
to do ill ; since it is to refuse obedience, and to re-
solve not to arrive at our proper end. Would to
God there were no instances to be found, of persons
whose light has been turned into darkness, for not
having made that use of their light which God re-
quired of them ! Let us take great care that we
ourselves never increase the number; let us walk
while we have the light, and prevent the night of
death by a speedy and perfect conversion.

" 36. While ye have light, believe in the light,
that ye may be the children of light. These things
spake Jesus, and departed, and did hide himself from
them."

Scarce can we forbear trembling, when we see
this poor people just going to lose the light for ever,
because they had preferred the darkness of their
passions before it ; and yet we are under no appre-
hension, lest our own should deprive us of the same
light, which is given us in the gospel. Faith is the
great means whereby the divine light enters into our
hearts, and which causes the light to shine in dark-
ness. Ever since the fall of Adam, our soul is like

CHAPTER XII. 449

a dying lamp, which the eternal light revives and
feeds again by means of faith, and which will one
day be re-united to the fulness of that eternal light.
The perfect light of glory will be communicated only
to those, who, by the light of faith, have followed
Jesus Christ and his maxims. Lord, who hast taught
us that faith is the work of God in the soul, preserve
and perfect, I beseech thee, in mine, this work of thy
mercy.

Sect. V. — The Jews continue incredulous. Faith
suppressed by fear.

" 37. % But though he had done so many mira-
cles before them, yet they believed not on him :"

No miracles, no benefits, no instructions, are able
to soften the heart of man, without the internal and
actual grace of Christ. The more plentifully God
bestows upon us his outward gifts, the more carefully
ought we to beg of him the grace to make a good
use of them by faith ; since otherwise they will serve
only to our condemnation. Whatever Jesus did
before the Jews, he has done before us, since we
believe it : and how many other miracles has he done
since, which we have no less reason to believe !
They will rise up in judgment against us, as much,
nay more, than against them, if we do not believe
with that obedient faith, which engages us to prac-
tise according to our belief.

" 38. That the saying of Esaias the prophet might
be fulfilled, which he spake, Lord, who hath believed
our report? and to whom hath the arm of the Lord
been revealed ?" •

God sees from all eternity the evil which he thinks

450 ST. JOHN.

proper to suffer the corrupt will to commit, by leaving
it to itself: but neither his foreseeing, nor his fore-
telling this evil, imposes any necessity upon the will :
God having no part in the corruption and disorder
of it, which is the sole cause of sin. Whatever
God foretells, is so exactly fulfilled, that it seems to
happen ou purpose to verify the prophecy; whereas,
in reality, this was delivered only because the event
would certainly come to pass. There are but few
who believe ; and among those who do, few have so
perfect a faith as to be altogether unconcerned in this
reproof of the prophet. Jesus Christ being of the
same substance with the Father, being his word and
power according to his divine nature, is as it were his
arm, since by him he made the world, and all things
therein ; and it is likewise by him, in his human and
created nature, that he repairs and restores all things,
and saves the world. The sacred humanity of
Christ, is the instrument of all the miracles which
God wrought by his Son, of the merit of all his
graces, and of all the works of holiness and mercy.
It is a dreadful, bat withal a just and adorable judg-
ment, when God, for the punishment of past offences,
abandons the sinner to infidelity, and to the obduracy
of his corrupt will. The Jews see the miracles, but
they do not see the arm which works them, having
a veil upon the eyes of their heart. Pride spreads
this veil over the heart : humility removes and takes
it away.

" 39. Therefore they could not believe, because
that Esaias said again, "

It is impossible that what God has foreseen and
foretold should not come to pass; because it is im-

CHAPTER XII. 451

possible that he should either deceive us, or be de-
ceived himself. We must steadfastly adhere to the
truth of the Scriptures, which are of infallible cer-
tainty. Let us bewail ourselves under this inability
of the will, with which, by reason of the sin of Adam,
we are all born, and which, by our own sins, we daily
increase. Let us continually have recourse to him
who has said, " Without me ye can do nothing,"
and " No man can come to me, except the Father
draw him."

" 40. He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened
their heart; that they should not see with their eyes,
nor understand with their heart, and be converted,
and I should heal them."

The voluntary inability of a blind and obdurate
heart has three causes. 1. The devil who suggests.
2. Man who consents. 3. God, who either leaves
the sinner to his own corrupt inclination, or heaps
up benefits upon him, which to him are no other than
fresh occasions of sin, as both admonitions and mira-
cles were to Pharaoh, and here to the Jews. Blind-
ness and obduracy have several degrees : whoever
either does not see and understand the truths which
are necessary to his good conduct and behaviour, or
is not directed by those he does understand, on such
occasions wherein they ought to be his rule and
guide, is blind and hardened with respect to them.
Let us take care that these words do not induce us
to murmur against God, or to presume to censure
his proceedings, instead of humbling ourselves, and
adoring him with fear and trembling.

" 41. These things said Esaias, when he saw his
glory, and spake of him,"

452 ST. JOHN.

The prophets spake only of Jesus Christ. Who-
ever has not him in his mind and heart when he reads
them, finds in them no manner of relish at all. If
Esaias saw Jesus Christ in his glory, then is he
really and truly God ; and it was of him, as well as
of the Father and the Holy Ghost, that he sung
that hymn of his holiness, " Holy, holy, holy is the
Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory,"
(Isaiah vi. 3.) It was he also who blinded this
people, by showing them light in darkness, his di-
vinity in the meanness of our flesh ; who hardened
them, by working so many miracles, which served
only to increase their envy and hatred towards him ;
and who rendered their diseases incurable, by ex-
posing himself to their rage, and suffering them to
crucify him. Lord, prepare my heart, that it be not
blinded and hardened by the reading of thy word,
and by the consideration of the wonders of thy life.

" 42. % Nevertheless among the chief rulers also
many believed on him ; but because of the Pharisees
they did not confess him, lest they should be put
out of the synagogue :"

When I see these chief rulers believe in the midst
of so many obstacles, I give glory to God, and ad-
mire the power of his grace. But when I see them
afraid to own their faith, I am ashamed of the
cowardice of men, and their weakness makes me
afraid. God could have removed their timorousness,
as he did their incredulity; but he delays the last
gifts, that men may not attribute to themselves the
first. In whatever state and circumstances we are,
we must take great care not to set our hearts too
much upon them. The fear of a disgrace, or of an

CHAPTER XII. 453

unjust excommunication, is enough to ruin us eter-
nally; since it was probably the cause of the damna-
tion of abundance of Jews, who were convinced of
the innocence and divinity of Christ. We must
not pertinaciously adhere to any thing which it is in
the power of man to take away, if we desire to secure
that which none but God can confer upon us. He
can save a soul without the use of the sacraments,
and out of the external communion of the church;
but he cannot save it, so long as it prefers these
things before its duty, and the obligation it lies un-
der to own and confess him.

"43. For they loved the praise* of men more
than the praise* of God." [* Fr. Glory.]

How common are these four obstacles of faith !
1. Too great a regard to men. 2. Riches and tem-
poral advantages. 3. The fear of disgrace. 4. The
love of the praise of men. — Faith and charity may
be separate from each other; since these Jews had
the former, but not the latter, which alone causes
men to love the glory of God. Abundance of per-
sons persuade themselves, that they love God more
than the world, until some trying occasion fully con-
vinces them of their mistake. It is a very great
misfortune, for a man not to know himself but only
by his falls and acts of infidelity : but it is the greatest
of all, not to rise again and recover himself. This
is generally occasioned by the love of the praise and
glory of men j because in their account it is more
shameful to rise again, than it was to fall.

454 ST. JOHN.

Sect. VI. — The light of faith. The word of God
judges men. Christ speaks nothing bid what his
Father has said unto him.

" 44. f Jesus cried, and said, He that believeth
on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent
me."

Christ raises his voice, on purpose to conclude his
public preaching in a more remarkable manner; to
show that the hatred and power of his enemies do
not in the least dismay him ; to upbraid those with
their cowardice who dared not openly declare for him,
and to encourage them by his example, &c. In this
and the following verses Christ himself gives us an
encomium of faith : and he must needs know it per-
fectly, being the author and finisher thereof. First,
He shows the dignity and excellency of it. For that
which the eyes of the flesh see of Christ is not the
ultimate object of our faith, but the means which
makes that object known to us, namely, God his
Father. Christ brings his Father's word to men, as
his ambassador; and therefore the injury of not be-
lieving falls ultimately and chiefly upon the Father
himself. Christ here magnifies his office and mis-
sion, because he perceives, in the hearts of these
timorous magistrates, that they are afraid it will be a
disgrace to them, should they adhere to a person who
seemed to have nothing more in him than other men.

" 45. And he that seeth me, seeth him that sent
me."

The knowledge of the Father is inseparable from
that of the Son, who is his image according to his
divine nature, and who, by his whole life, conduct, aivl

CHAPTER XII. 455

miracles, rendered the wisdom, goodness, greatness,
and power of his divinity? (which he has in common
with his Father,) visible to the eyes of men. Grant,
Lord, that I may imitate thee, in always raising my
mind up to the very fountain of that good which
God has infused into me, and in desiring that others
may see and consider him alone in all his gifts.
We are the images of God, both by the gifts of na-
ture and of grace ; let us be so likewise by our godli-
ness and the holiness of our lives, that whoever sees
us may plainly see God in us.

" 46. I am come a light into the world, that who-
soever believeth on me should not abide in darkness."

Second, Christ shows the usefulness and advantage
of faith, in that it is the only w^ay whereby we can get
out of darkness. What unaccountable madness is
it, to choose rather to abide in the darkness of sin,
than to admit the light which comes to seek us — a
light which was before the world began, and which
came down even into the darkness thereof! There
is not one of all the sons of Adam, who was not born
in darkness, and whom Christ did not find plunged
therein, when he came to him by the first ray of his
grace. But, alas ! how many did he leave in that
state of darkness by his justice, when he vouchsafed
to draw us out of it through the tenderness of his
mercy ! Let us not pass by this, or any other op-
portunity, without returning thanks to God for this
inestimable favour, and without seriously considering
the fidelity it requires of us.

" 47. And if any man hear my words, and be-
lieve not, I judge him not : for I came not to judge
the world, but to save the world."

456 ST. JOHN.

Third, Christ specifies the nature and quality of the
faith which God requires of us, which must be such
as shows itself by our obedience to his law. Not to
believe what Christ declares to men, is an indignity
towards him which deserves an eternal punishment:
but how much greater is the indignity, to believe his
words, and yet to despise them ! My God ! what
numbers of Christians does this truth arraign, and
perhaps us too who are reading it at this time ! The
first mission of Christ is all grace and mercy : he
comes as a Saviour, and not as a Judge. It belongs
not to an envoy or ambassador, to revenge the in-
juries he receives; but to the prince who sent him,
and who is affronted in his person : and Jesus Christ
both appears and preaches no otherwise than in the
name of his Father. Those who are commissioned
to deliver his word to men, ought to imitate his ex-
ample in this respect.

" 48. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my
words, hath one that judgeth him : the word that I
have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last
day."

Fourth, Christ shows the necessity of faith in order
to avoid the wrath of God ; since he who continues in
darkness is already judged as a child of darkness.
The ministers of Christ ought never to revenge the
injuries which are done them ; nor should they ever
be provoked because their preaching is disregarded
and despised. It is the word of God, and not their
own which they deliver; and therefore they must
leave the care of punishing the contempt thereof
to him alone. A pastor is sent to no other end but
to save ; and if he be obliged at any time to inflict

CHAPTER XII. 457

punishments, they must be only such as are healing
and salutary. The truth will judge that person
whom it does not justify. Christians will certainly
be judged by the gospel; and yet few practise it,
many despise it, and the greatest part know little or
nothing of it.

M 49. For I have not spoken of myself; but the
Father which sent me, he gave me a commandment,
what I should say, and what* I should speak."
[* Ft. How.]

Fifth, Christ teaches us that faith has two immov-
able foundations. The first is, that the word we be-
lieve is the word of God. The second, that the
mission of the person who preaches it is sufficiently
authorized of God by miracles. That person preaches
with a well-grounded confidence, who speaks or ad-
vances nothing merely of his own head. God gives
a blessing to his word in the mouth of an obedient
pastor or preacher, who teaches nothing but what he
has received from God, and does not disguise it by
such a way of expression and delivery as savours too
much of the world. Every thing was appointed and
prescribed to Christ by his Father, even to the very
manner how he should speak: and his obedience
was so much the more perfect, free, and meritorious,
the more incapable he was of disobeying his Father.
The disciples and ministers of Christ ought to de-
liver nothing but what they have learned from him,
and not the inventions of their own wit ; and are
obliged to manifest in themselves the holiness of him
in whose name they speak, by a plain, modest, and
Christian way of behaviour.

" 50. And I know that his commandment is life

Vol. III. U 57

458 ST. JOHN.

everlasting: whatsoever I speak therefore, even as
the Father said unto me, so I speak."

The law of God, fulfilled by charity or love, has
a quickening virtue in it, and is the source of life
everlasting. This is the sum and substance of all
evangelical preaching; with this Christ concludes his
exercise of the public ministration of the word; and
to this all the cares and endeavours of a preacher or
pastor ought to tend. For he ought to make it his
whole business to inspire his people with the love of
God's law : to convince and satisfy them, that the
true devotion of a Christian consists in the keeping
of his commandments, and not in arbitrary perform-
ances which are the choice of inclination ; that there
is no other way besides this to everlasting life; and
that the pastor himself ought to set them an example
of a perfect obedience to God, by doing his duty in
the manner which God has enjoined. Since life
everlasting is annexed to the commandments of God,
those men shut the gate of the former against Chris-
tians, who give them false notions of the latter, and
weaken their obligation by pernicious ways of soften-
ing the rigour of them. Grant us, Lord, the grace
to show a perfect submission to thy law ; and be
pleased likewise to give thy church such pastors as
may make known the holiness of that law, and teach
it in the purity of thy Holy Spirit.

CHAPTER XIII. 459

CHAPTER XIII.

Sect. I. — Christ washes the feet of the Apostles.

" 1. Now, before the feast of the passover, when
Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should
depart* out of this world unto the Father, having
loved his own which were in the world, he loved
them unto the end." [* Fr. Pass.]

Hitherto the work of Jesus Christ, the establish-
ment of the Christian religion, is only marked out,
as it were, in a platform ; and the minds of men pre-
pared by his preaching, by the example of his life,
by his miracles, which evidently proved his mission,
and by the cures which he performed on their bodies.
He is now going to give the highest proofs of his
love, by the last and greatest instances of humility
and patience; by the prescription of the great re-
medies for sin, of the great means of salvation, of
Christian grace, and of the new sacrament; by the
forming of his ministers, by the institution of the
grand sacrifice, and the celebration of the grand pass-
over, upon which and its consequences God has made
the salvation of the world depend. By making this
reflection upon our blessed Saviour's love, St. John
requires of us fresh attention, and a new increase of
our love and gratitude. This sacrifice, which must
cost him so dear, seems no more to him than a pas-
sage or departure to his Father. Whatever passes
away is nothing: the reward of the most painful
obedience, consisting in the enjoyment of God, is
eternal ; and to one who really loves him, the very

v2

460 ST. JOHN.

expectation of enjoying him is sufficient to make him
forget every tiling besides. A good pastor, who is
about to leave his flock, makes it his last care to form
good labourers who may supply his place: this is the
work to which our blessed Lord devotes the remain-
ing part of his life. How comes it to pass, that we
are so inconstant in our love towards Jesus Christ,
since he loves us with so constant a perseverance unto
the end?

M 2. And supper being ended, (the devil having
now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's
son, to betray him,)"

How dreadful is the devil's power over the hearts
of sinners who have laid themselves open to him,
since it extends so far as to make them betray Jesus
Christ ! My God, what exceeding difference is
there betwixt that which the love of Christ puts into
his heart in favour of sinners, and that which self-
love and blind concupiscence put into their hearts
against him ! Nothing could have any influence
upon this ungrateful wretch, or soften the hardness
of his heart, neither those marks of kindness and
friendship which he had lately received, nor even the
sight of his Master just going to fall down at his
feet. On the contrary, nothing can hinder Christ
from showing towards him his love and patience to
the very last. Where, then, are those who cannot
bear the sight of a person whom they dislike, or who
has been wanting in the discharge of some dyty to-
wards them ?

" 3. Jesus knowing that the Father had given all
things into his hands, and'tfhat he was come from
God, and went to God;"

CHAPTER XIII. 461

Man is so corrupt, that neither the knowledge of
his own miseries, nor the experience of his extreme
frailties and infirmities, is capable of humbling him
under the hand of God. On the contrary, Christ is
so holy, that the knowledge of his own divine per-
fections, and of the sovereign power God has given
into his hands, cannot hinder him from humbling him-
self even at the feet of the vilest of his creatures, of
a sinner whose heart is under the possession of the
devil. Let the great come to this school, there to
learn, by seeing the inconceivable humility of the
only Son of God, not to be puffed up with the splen-
dour of their birth and family, or with the vast hopes
of still increasing their wealth and honour. This
humility of Christ proceeds not from any ignorance
of what he is in himself, as i* often does in men, but
from the choice of his will, and from the knowledge
of the greatness and majesty of God. Let us adore
his sovereign power, his sublime perfections, his de-
scent from his Father, and his glorious return into
his bosom, with so much the more reverence and de-
votion, the more he has been pleased to humble and
abase thern for our sakes.

" 4. He riseth from supper, and laid aside his
garments; and took a towel, and girded himself. 5.
After that he poureth water into a basin, and be^an
to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the
towel wherewith he was girded."

When the children of Adam humble themselves,
there is always some deficiency in their humiliation ;
pride still finds a way to creep in, and shows itself
in some respect or other: but the humiliation of
Christ is complete in all its circumstances, since he

462 ST. JOHN.

makes no use of the assistance or service of any one,
either to lay aside his garments, or to gird himself,
or to pour out the water. And yet this is but a
shadow of that more perfect and abasing humiliation,
whereby the Son of God, as it were, stripped himself
of all his majesty and glory, to clothe himself with
the nature of servants, as with a napkin or towel,
with which he wiped away our sins and earthly affec-
tions, after having washed us in the water of his tears
and his blood. Having condescended and stooped
thus far below himself, he now stoops even below Ju-
das, it being impossible for him to stoop lower than
the feet of that monster. It is from Jesus Christ, in
this posture, that men must learn to cleanse them-
selves by humiliation and penitential exercises, in
order to prepare themselves for the priesthood, for
the Christian sacrifice and communion, for which
Christ hereby prepared his apostles.

" 6. Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter
said unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet?"

The humility of Christ is incomprehensible even
to one of the chief of the apostles. The first in dig-
nity ought to be the first also in purity, humility,
faith, and religion. Had not Peter, when he saw
Jesus at his feet, greater reason to say to him, as he
did once, being himself prostrate at his, " Depart
from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord?" On the
contrary, it is for this very reason that Christ must
not depart from him ; since none but he can cleanse
him from his sins. Expressions of reverence and
respect, and testimonies of religion, are sometimes
sincere and unfeigned, and yet for all that are not
well-timed, and conformable to the will of God.

CHAPTER XIII. 463

" 7. Jesus answered and said unto him, What
I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know
hereafter."

There is a sort of resistance or refusal which seems
to be humble and respectful, and yet proceeds from
our ignorance, and even from our presumption. Men
are sometimes desirous to show themselves humble in
their own way, contrary to the settled order of their
duties ; and so oppose the will of God before they
are aware. It is this will which ought always to
regulate the external exercise of humility. We fre-
quently know the will of God, without knowing the
reason thereof: and the first thing we have to do is
to submit to it, since in this the true obedience of
faith does consist. God sometimes puts into a spi-
ritual office a person in many respects very imperfect,
and places one of great holiness at his feet : in a little
time we shall know the reason of this; for the dark-
ness of this world will soon pass away. All the out-
ward actions of Christ are full of mysteries ; a patient
and obedient faith attains to the understanding of
them.

" 8. Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash
my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not,
thou hast no part with me."

How admirable a sight, and how instructive a
lesson, do we here behold in this contest betwixt the
humility of Christ, and the faith, reverence, and love
of Peter ! These virtues, when not accompanied
with obedience, are as nothing in the sight of God.
The greatest fervency and zeal of devotion, attended
even with some outward signs of humility, are but
mere delusion, when7 not regulated by that obedience

464 ST. JOHN.

which is due to the church and to our superiors.
There is no threatening more terrible to a soul which
loves God, than that of being separated from him.
Whatever degree .of purity we may imagine we have,
if we be not cleansed by Christ, we are unworthy of
his table, of the participation of his body, and of the
glory of his new life. Lord, imprint this truth deep
in my heart, that I may be sensible how much I stand
in need of thee to make me clean in thy sight, and
that I may have recourse to thee, O thou fountain of
true purity !

" 9. Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my
feet only, but also my hands and my head.',

A ready obedience is a certain sign of a sincere
humility, and of a true faith. Let us leave Christ
to do with us according to his good pleasure, that we
may partake of his grace, his mysteries, and his king-
dom. How unworthy soever we may be of the divine
gifts, we must accept them when God offers them to
us. It is a false kind of humility to refuse the good-
ness of God too long; and it is no other than pre-
sumption to pretend to set rules to his liberality to-
wards us, and to know how far we stand in need of
him. The great difficulty in the way to perfection,
is to know how to resign up our will and desires to
the guidance of him who knows us better than we do
ourselves. We always desire either too much or too
little, when our will is not directed by him. We
must learn of Peter not to persist in our resolutions,
as soon as we know that they are not from God, and
that they are obstacles either to salvation or to per-
fection.

" 10. Jesus saith to him, He that is washed need-

CHAPTER XIII. 465

etli not, save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit :
and ye are clean, but not all."

The head is an emblem of faith, which is the
source of all good thoughts in the mind, and of all
pious motions in the will; the hands denote good
works, and the feet the affections. When even our
faith is pure, and our life truly Christian, there is still
a great deal to be cleansed in the affections and dis-
positions of the heart. This is the work of our whole
lives, to the performing of which we continually stand
in need of the assistance of Christ, as well as to the
preserving of the other gifts of his mercy. There are
some scrupulous souls, who, from a principle different
from that of Peter, are always fancying that they
have occasion to wash either their head or their hands,
and thus amusing themselves with imaginary wants,
take no manner of care to wash their feet, to correct
their affections, and to oppose their imperfect or dis-
orderly inclinations.

" 11. For he knew who should betray him:
therefore said he, Ye are not all clean."

It belongs to Christ alone to judge of inward piety.
The perfect knowledge which he shows the traitor he
has of his heart, and of his designs, has not the least
influence upon him, because his avarice has taken full
possession of him. The desire of earthly riches ren-
ders men deaf to the word of God, to inspirations,
and internal admonitions. We should take' care to
enter again into the bottom of our own hearts, in-
stead of having the presumption to imagine we can
prevail with Christ to enter into them, when the re-
proach of our own conscience assures us that thev are
not clean enough to receive him. Christ, by this

u 3

466 ST. JOHN.

admonition, afflicts the rest of the apostles; but it is
much better to give holy persons some uneasiness and
disquiet, of which they know how to make a good use,
and which will increase their vigilance, than either
not to warn a sinner at all, who is running headlong
into perdition, or to ruin his reputation by open and
public reproof.

" 12. So, after he had washed their feet, and had
taken his garments, and was set down again, he said
unto them, Know ye what I have done to you?"

That person does not know the mysteries of Christ,
who knows only the outward part of fhem. The good
Shepherd, intent on forming the pastors who are to
supply his place, teaches them, by his example, to in-
struct their flocks in the spiritual meaning of the in-
stitutions of the church, which is the life and soul of
them. It is chiefly either just before or after the
use of these institutions, or when they are most pre-
sent to the mind, that a priest ought to make this in-
quiry, " Know ye what I am going to do, or what I
have done to you? what it is has been done to this
child by all these institutions of baptism ?" &c. —
How holy is that table, how becoming a Christian
and a priest, where men entertain and instruct one
another in the life of Christ, and in the institutions
of the church, by means of curious questions in reli-
gion ! This is a method which might supply the
want of those lectures of piety, with which the coun-
cils enjoin even bishops to sanctify their tables and
meals. It is a shame and reproach to Christians,
that their tables are often more profane than those of
moral heathens were.

" 13. Ye call me Master and Lord : and ye say
well; for so I am."

CHAPTER Xni. 467

The humility of a bishop does not consist in not
knowing, or not owning the greatness and authority
of his dignity ; but in not insisting upon it to any
other purpose but the salvation of souls, and in sacri-
ficing all external and temporal advantages for their
sakes. It concerns us highly to consider seriously
all those rights which these two qualities of Master
and Lord give Jesus Christ over us. If we are his
disciples, let us study, publish, love, and follow his
maxims. If we are his servants, let us serve none
but him ; let us imitate his virtues, which are the
proper badges which show that we belong to him; let
Us direct all our labours to the advancement of his
interests and his glory ; let us be always ready to
obey him, and to do his will, &c.

" 14. If I then, your Lord and Master, have
washed your feet, ye also ought to wash one another's
feet."

If holiness itself stoop so low even as the feet of
Judas, what ought not a bishop or a priest to do for
the sake of souls ? A master whose business it is to
teach the virtue of humility, and such every pastor
ought to be, should not undertake to teach it till he
has first practised it himself. If our circumstances
do not require us to imitate literally the example of
Christ, in washing the feet of our brethren, let us do
it at least spiritually, in exercising charity and humi-
lity towards them, and even towards our enemies.
Christ has annexed to some sensible signs and visible
sacraments, those truths, virtues, and mysteries, the
memory whereof he would have us preserve with the
greatest care, as being the most necessary for us :
particularly to the washing of feet he has joined the

468 ST. JOHN.

remembrance of his humility ; to the sacrament of the
eucharist, the remembrance of his love.

" 15. For I have given you an example, that ye
should do as I have done to you."

Christ was pleased to become our pattern and ex-
ample, chiefly as to the practice of humility and cha-
rity. It is even of greater use and advantage to ob-
serve the spirit of this ceremony than the letter, in
humbling ourselves below our neighbours, to gain
them over to God. Every one ought to endeavour,
in his proper station, to cleanse and purify his brother
by good example, by fraternal reproof, by wholesome
advice and exhortations, by forgiving the injuries he
has received, and by humbling himself for those he
has done. A pastor who is always ready to serve his
neighbour, always intent on cleansing him from his
sins, endeavouring by his tears to wash away the
filth which sinners have contracted from their conver-
sation with the world, &c. is a true imitator of the
holy and adorable servitude of the Prince of pastors.

U 16. Veriiy, verily, I say unto you, The servant
is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent
greater than he that sent him."

Who are we, that we should expect to be treated
better than Jesus Christ ? Nothing can be more just
and equitable than this fundamental maxim of Chris-
tianity; and yet there is nothing with which we are
less willing to comply. It is great injustice in a sin-
ner, to be unwilling either to humble himself, or to
be humbled ; but it is much greater in a person whom
Christ has admitted to a share of the sacerdotal ser-
vice with himself, which requires a more exact and
faithful imitation of his humility. To see Jesus

CHAPTER XIII. 469

Christ thus embrace humiliation, is matter of great
consolation to the humble; but to those who are
enemies thereto, it is a reproach, a subject of shame
and of condemnation. Let us often repeat that to
ourselves which Christ here speaks to us ; and then
we shall never complain of ill usage, afflictious, or
humiliations.

" IT. If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye
do them."

It is not light or knowledge which makes a man
happy in this life; but the good use of knowledge, and
the love of the cross of Christ. The knowledge of
our duties, without the practice of them, serves only
to expose us to a severer judgment. The more we
know concerning Christ, and the more plainly it ap-
pears to us that he embraced a state of poverty and
humiliation, not out of weakness or necessity, but out
of choice and love, the more abominable in the sio-ht
of God is our love of grandeur, luxury, and of a soft
and sensual life. It is neither by thoughts nor
words, nor by mere external acts of worship, that we
really own Christ to be our Master, and ourselves to
be his servants, but by doing his will, and imitatincr
the example of his humility. Men often talk loudly
of the names of vicars, vicegerents, and ambassadors
of Christ ; but they think but little of the obliga-
tions which those names lay upon them, they avoid
what he loved, they seek what he despised, they
desire to live in friendship with the world, and are
willing to succeed the sovereign Pastor in his autho-
rity, but not in his humility.

470 ST. JOHN.

Sect. II. — The Treachery of Judas foretold.

" 18. % I speak not of you all; I know whom I
have chosen : but, that the scripture may be fulfilled,
He that eateth bread with me hath lift up his heel
against me."

It is not easy to honour and imitate this calmness
and tranquillity of mind and heart, with which Christ
speaks of the person who was to betray him, and of
his own death. But he can do in us whatever he did
in himself. Those who are betrayed by their friends,
undergo this misfortune through ignorance, and be-
cause they are not aware of it : but Christ from the
beginning saw all the wicked designs of Judas, and
could have avoided them. The Psalms of David
are to be understood literally concerning Christ, as
well as the other prophecies: and the history of the
treason committed against David, did prophetically
describe that which was to be committed against Jesus
Christ. That holy king was not only a prophet in
respect of his Psalms, but he was a man entirely pro-
phetical by his life, his persecutions, his battles, his
victories, his reign, &c. He is a picture of Jesus
Christ, in which we see him represented in a lively
manner, when we behold it with the eyes of faith.

% " 19. Now I tell you before it come, that, when
it is come to pass, ye may believe that 1 am he."

A good pastor ought to prepare Christians for
temptation, and to arm them beforehand against any
occasion of scandal or offence which he foresees will
happen. Christ neither does nor says any thing in
vain, because he has several designs both in his ac-
tions and his words. He does not convert Judas

CHAPTER XIII. 471

indeed by his prophetical admonitions, on the con-
trary he hardens him the more : but he makes known
his divinity, strengthens the faith of his disciples,
gives them means of engaging others to acknow-
ledge him to be what he really is, and affords even
us an occasion to adore his conduct, wisdom, meek-
ness, patience, and intent application to the work of
his Father, and his great care to prevent the scandal
which the treachery of one of the apostles must ne-
cessarily have given all the rest, had he not showed
them that he was not ignorant of it even when he
chose him, and that he knew of his treachery before
he put it in execution.

" 20. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that re-
ceiveth whomsoever I send, receiveth me ; and he
that receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me."

So close and strict is the union betwixt Christ and
his members, that he himself receives the good which
is done to them. But stricter still is that betwixt
him and his ministers, by the unity of his priesthood,
to a share in which he vouchsafes to admit them.
Their mission makes a part of his. It is his place
which they sustain; his authority which they exer-
cise; a portion of his divine unction which they have
received ; and they are the functions of his priest-
hood which they continue. It is an error which is
attended with dreadful consequences, for a person
either to reject Christ, while he thinks he rejects only
a mere man ; or to receive a false prophet or an im-
postor, imagining that he receives Jesus Christ. The
mission is the thing which we must chiefly regard.
To assure us that we receive an ambassador of God
sent by Jesus Christ, it must appear that the mission
which is pretended to is derived from Christ.

472 ST. JOHN.

" 21. When Jesus had thus said, he was troubled
in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say
unto you, That one of you shall betray rne."

Christ having showed in the preceding verse, what
it is to be an apostle, and to how high a degree of
hono\ir such a person is advanced, he now discovers
at last, of what excessive ingratitude towards him one
whom he had raised to that honour was capable.
Nothing gives us a juster ideaof a God betrayed by his
apostle, by him whom he had honoured with his parti-
cular confidence, than to see this divine constancy and
resolution, as it were, shaken, and this sovereign peace
and tranquillity of mind disturbed and troubled in
Jesus Christ. The sins of priests and pastors, espe-
cially when they betray Jesus Christ in betraying the
church, the truth, and the interests of souls, are capa-
ble of troubling the soul of Christ himself; so much
does he abhor sins of that nature. How few are
there of that profession, who are so deeply affected
with the sins, and with the loss of souls, as to be
troubled in spirit on that account, and whose charity
towards their enemies is never wearied out !

" 22. Then the disciples looked one on another,
doubting * of whom he spake." £* Fr. Being in
pain to know.]

There is no greater pain or more rigorous penance
to souls which really love God, and hate sin for his
sake, than these doubts and uncertainties in which he
sometimes leaves them concerning the state of their
conscience. We have reason to dread every thing,
when we are once thoroughly sensible what the heart
of man is under those dismal circumstances into which
the siu of Adam has brought it. We neither avoid

CHAPTER XIII. 473

any thing which is evil, nor do any thing which is
good, without a kind of miracle, since it is by a super-
natural assistance : and to think ourselves sure of this
miracle, would be such a degree of presumption, as
would alone render us unworthy of it. The very
name of sin ouo-ht to make us tremble, whatever the
testimony of our conscience is.

" 23. Now there was leaning on Jesus' bosom
one of his disciples, whom Jesus loved."

The virginal purity of John gives him so free an
access to the bosom of Christ ; and it was from his
bosom that he drew the sublime truths of his gospel,
and that ardent love for his Master. Chastity and
modesty are inseparable. It is this modesty which
hinders John from naming himself, when he relates the
particular favours which his Master conferred upon
him. His gratitude causes him to forget, as it were,
his own name, that he may make himself known by
nothing but the kindness of his Saviour towards him ;
and he forgets even all his other gifts, that he may
remember that only of his love, the most precious of
all, and the fountain of all the rest. Where should
that disciple whom Jesus loved rest, if not in the
bosom, and on the heart of Jesus, where this love
resides ? Let us by no means envy the happy lot of
John : let us be faithful imitators of the purity, mo-
desty, and charity of Christ, and we shall be all of us
his beloved disciples. When we receive the com-
munion worthily, we are in the bosom of Christ, and
Christ is in ours; we dwell in Christ, and Christ in
us : of this we are assured by his word.

" 24. Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him,
that he should ask who it should be of whom he
spake."

474 ST. JOHN.

Charity and authority ought to conspire together
in the church, to discover the disorders and irregula-
rities of its ministers, and mutually to assist each
other to hinder them from being hurtful and preju-
dicial to souls. The primacy or first place in love
has the advantage of the first place in power, with
respect to prayer and a near access to Christ. He
discovers his secrets to those whom he loves most.
Those who are the highest in authority ought not to
think they debase themselves, when they have re-
course to the prayers of those who surpass them in
the love of God.

" 25. He then, lying on Jesus' breast, saith unto
him, Lord, who is it?"

Purity and charity give men a right to use a sort
of holy freedom with God and Christ. The divine
gifts and talents must be employed under the guid-
ance and direction of authority. Piety obeys power
with simplicity of mind, as power ought with humi-
lity to command piety. A person may be said to
pray " lying on Jesus' breast," who offers up his
prayers relying on his fatherly love, with trust and
confidence in his merits, and with the spirit of a child,
which is love. We ought not to have any curiosity
to know who are wicked, but only for the advantage
of the church, and that we may be upon our guard
against them.

" 26. Jesus answered, He it is to whom I shall
give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he
had dipped the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the
son of Simon."

The gifts of God, received by hypocrites, give ad-
mission to the devil into their heart. How dangerous

CHAPTER XIII. 475

is it to receive unworthily the very best things from
the hand of Christ himself! If there be so much
clanger in thus receiving a morsel of bread, how much
more is there in unworthily receiving the consecrated
elements which represent his body and blood ? A
man is in a very desperate condition indeed, when the
divine gifts serve only to manifest the corruption and
wickedness of his heart. It would perhaps be more
profitable to a wicked person, to receive chastisements
at the hand of God, rather than benefits ; but it is in
this respect that his justice is extremely terrible, in
that he bestows such good things upon him as do but
harden him the more, instead of punishing him in
order to open his eyes. My God, overwhelm me
with temporal punishments, rather than ever permit
me to fall into so deplorable a state and condition.

M 27. And after the sop Satan entered into him.
Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do
quickly."

It sometimes happens, that some temporal benefit
from God, or a sacrilegious communion, of which this
sop is an emblem, completes the obduracy of a sin-
ner, and renders him as it were incurable. All sense
of every thing is extinguished in this traitor: he has
neither understanding, nor remorse, nor shame: the
devil has taken full possession of his heart, to make
it the instrument of his intended work. There are
three causes which concur to the hardening of any
person : 1. The benefits of God, received with a
traitorous, perfidious, and ungrateful heart. 2. The
devil, who enters into such a heart, wherein there is
no longer any thing to resist him, and hinder him
from making it his slave. 3. God, who abandons

476 ST. JOHN.

this heart to its wickedness and hardness, since it has
so often rejected the charitable hand of its Physician.
Fatal liberty this of doing evil ! Happy those to
whom God refuses it, and whom he obstructs and
opposes in their wicked designs.

" 28. Now no man at the table knew for what
intent he spake this unto him."

A pastor ought to preserve charity towards the
greatest sinners, and to use them with tenderness to
the very last. Christ makes himself understood by
whom he pleases, and in what manner he pleases.
Judas understands him to his condemnation : the rest
of the apostles do not understand him at all, to the
end that peace may be preserved among them, that
the traitor may be concealed, and that no obstruction
may be given to the sacrifice upon which the salva-
tion of the world depends. Their simplicity serves
as a veil to hide Judas. Charity is not apt to be
suspicious and distrustful; it never sees what is evil,
but only when it is forced to see it.

" 29. For some of them thought, because Judas
had the bag, that Jesus had said unto him, Buy those
things that we have need of against the feast; or,
that he should give something to the poor."

It appears from hence, that Christ left the care of
his money, and the management of his common and
ordinary expenses, to Judas, but that he reserved to
himself the giving particular directions in what con-
cerned his sacrifices, and in whatever related to the
worship of God in his family, or to the relief of the
poor. Who will pretend to excuse himself from the
duty of giving alms, when he sees that Jesus Christ
and his apostles gave even out of their poverty ? He

CHAPTER XIII. 477

sanctified the festivals by charity, and, in so doing,
teaches us to distribute our alms in greater abundance
on those days whereon God is pleased more abun-
dantly to shed abroad his graces in our hearts. This
is a retribution due by justice : but all the advantage
is on our side.

" 30. He then, having received the sop, went im-
mediately out; and it was night."

The extraordinary favours of God received un-
worthily, his admonitions despised, and his inspira-
tions rejected, serve only to precipitate that person
into sin, who has delivered up his heart to the devil.
The devil is an imperious master, who will be served
immediately, and gives the sinner no time to recover
himself. Nothing is a plainer indication of the sin-
ner's blindness, than the pleasure he takes in serving
a tyrant, after having left a Master endued with so
much gentleness and goodness. The night which
this miserable wretch has in his heart, is, without
comparison, blacker and darker than that which he
chooses for his work of darkness. O night, the most
criminal, dreadful, and dark, and yet, at the very same
time, the most holy, amiable, and bright ! — since as,
on the one side, the Son of God is therein betrayed,
sold, and delivered up by the most execrable sacri-
lege and parricide; so, on the other, he therein gives,
delivers up, and sacrifices himself by the most reli-
gious action that ever was, leaves the most divine
pledge of his love, and teaches therein the brightest
and sublimest truths of that religion which he then
institutes !

478 ST. JOHN.

Sect. III. — The Son of Man glorified. The Com-
mandmerit of Love. Peter's Denial foretold.

" 31. If Therefore, when he was gone out, Jesus
said, Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is
glorified in him."

Christ, who was so much concerned and troubled
in spirit while Judas was present, and in company
with the rest of his apostles, seems to have recovered
the peace and freedom of his mind immediately upon
the going out of that man of sin. A bishop, a pas-
tor, or a superior, is very grievously afflicted, when
he sees a soul ruin itself, and a member tear itself
from the body, from which, being separated, it cannot
possibly have any life. But when there is no re-
medy, he adores God in the depth of his judgments,
and joins peace and tranquillity of mind with fear
and trembling. It is matter of great joy to those
who are intrusted with the care of any society, to see
it purged of the leaven which might corrupt the new
lump. Judas, on his side, speaks concerning the
death of Christ, and speaks of it in his own way;
Christ likewise, on his side, speaks concerning it —
but in how different a language ! He sees nothing
but glory, where others discover nothing but humi-
liation and ignominy!

" 32. If God be glorified in him, God shall also
glorify him in himself, and shall straightway glorify
him."

Christ finds his glory in his humiliations, and in
his obedience even unto death, because God finds his
therein. In like manner, the Christian will always
find his true honour in honouring God, in what way

CHAPTER XIII. 479

soever it be, and whatever it cost him. The men
of this world, and those who follow the business of
war, talk of nothing but glory or honour, because
this is their end and design ,* and the more dangers
they have undergone in order to arrive at it, the
more glorious do they esteem themselves. Of what
then should Jesus Christ speak, who is the man of
God, and the God-man, if not of the glory of God,
which is his end, and that of all things ? We ought
to value nothing besides, but only so far as it leads
and conducts us to this. The hope of our own
glory, such as God has designed for us, is very con-
sistent with our seeking the glory of God, since it
is a means conducing thereto. But the most excel-
lent and powerful means of all others, is the glorious
resurrection of Christ. It is to publish and proclaim
this mystery, that Christ appoints his apostles ; it
was in being confessors and martyrs for it, that the
fidelity of Christians appeared. It is likewise, next
to God, the great object of our piety and devotion,
and the grand solemnity of the church.

" 33. Little children, yet a little while I am with
you. Ye shall seek me: and as I said unto the
Jews, Whither I go, ye cannot come; so now I say
to you."

The wonderful tenderness of Christ towards his
disciples, teaches us that true piety is not hard-
hearted and insensible. The more perfect charity
is, the more does it compassionate the troubles and
infirmities of others. It is a great consolation to the
Christian sheep or children, to see that their Father,
as well as themselves, is sensible of the concern
which attends a necessary separation : and to give

480 ST. JOHN.

them this consolation is a pastoral and paternal duty.
The tenderness of a pastor ought to have a freedom
and generosity in it, so as not to hinder him from
delivering disagreeable truths, and giving such advice
as is necessary. The state of the life after the re-
surrection is altogether spiritual ; and Christ is not.
then known according to the flesh, or according to
the usual manner of conversation.

" 34. A new commandment I give unto you, That
ye love one another; as 1 have loved you, that ye
also love one another."

The commandment of love is a new command-
ment, in that it has the love of Christ for its pattern,
and is newly engraved in the heart by the Holy
Ghost. We must love one another only for heaven,
and with a view to eternal happiness. This was
undoubtedly a new kind of love to the Jews, who
had only carnal hopes and expectations, and whose
dispensation was altogether temporal ; but the Chris-
tian, who is made such only in order to attain to
heaven, cannot be ignorant of this truth. The
generality of the friendships of the world are wholly
Jewish and temporal. There are very few which are
truly Christian, and which tend to a union in and
for God by the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Lord, en-
grave deep in me this love, which renews the heart,
which makes the new man, and which loves nothing
but in thee, according to thy will, and for thy sake !

" 35. By this shall all men know that ye are my
disciples, if ye have love one to another."

Love is the proper mark and character of a Chris-
tian : but such a love as is* altogether free, which has
neither self-interest for its foundation, nor benefits'

CHAPTER XIII. 481

for its motive, and which is proof against injuries.
To love, because we are loved, is a friendship which
is merely human, and which is common to us with
heathens : but to love, because God enjoins it upon
us, and to do it for his sake, this is the spirit of the
new religion of Christ. The mutual love or charity
which shows us to be the disciples of Christ, must
be conformable to his; for he has taught us nothing
but what he practised himself: and in order to re-
semble him, we must love our very enemies, and be
ready to give up our temporal life, to secure their
eternal salvation. A disciple of Moses is known by
a timorous, servile, and strict observance of a great
number of precepts, which the Jews were not able to
bear: on the contrary, we know a disciple of Christ
by a free, voluntary, and faithful observance of this
one commandment of our blessed Saviour, which in-
cludes all the rest.

" 36. ^f Simon Peter said unto him, Lord, whi-
ther goest thou ? Jesus answered him, Whither I
go, thou canst not follow me now; but thou shalt
follow me afterwards."

Peter's fondness for the visible presence of Christ
fixes his mind upon his preceding words, which men-
tioned his departure from them, instead of making
him attentive to the commandment of love, which
joins us closely and intimately to Christ, and renders
him present in our hearts. An irregular curiosity
follows an affection which is not perfect, and tempta-
tion follows curiosity. God has his proper times
and seasons, and he enables us by his grace to do
that at one time, which we could not do at another.
Whatever sense we may bave of our own weakness,

Vol. III. X 57

482 ST. JOHN.

let us always hope, that although we be not yet in
a condition to follow Christ in his ways, yet we shall
one day be able to do it. All have not the assurance
of this from the very mouth of Jesus Christ, as Peter
had; but all ought to have the same hope and con-
fidence in this respect.

" 37. Peter said unto him, Lord, why cannot I
follow thee now ? I will lay down my life for thy
sake."

There are very few who know the measure of their
own strength. We must not rely upon that which
we perceive in ourselves, or which we imagine we
have ; but we must pray much, and promise nothing
from ourselves. Peter asks why he cannot follow
Christ now ; and the reason is, because he believes
he can. Presumption gives imaginary strength, and
hinders men from asking and receiving that which
is real. When God assures us of any thing, let us
not pretend to argue about it; but' let us be so far
from contradicting him, as to believe without the
least hesitation. Peter was not yet strong enough
to renounce his own opinion and judgment, and to
submit entirely to the word of God — and yet he
thought he could renounce the love of life, and die
for the sake of his Master ! Thus a deceitful zeal
makes us believe we could do great things for God,
whilst, at the same time, we do not even easy things
which he actually requires of us. Strange delusion
this !

*' 38. Jesus answered him, Wilt thou lay down
thy life for my sake ? Verily, verily, I say unto
thee, The cock shall not crow, till thou hast denied
me thrice."

CHAPTER XIV. 483

How deep and how little known is the wound of
pride and presumption, in respect of our own strength,
since Christ, in order to lay it open to our sight,
and to heal it, permits so grievous a fall in an apostle
whom he loved so much ! Christ must lay down his
life for Peter, before Peter can lay down his for him.
The Son of God must confess his own divinity be-
fore the tribunal of men, to the end that Peter may
confess it: because the Son of God is the head of
the martyrs, and the first of the confessors, from
whom must be derived the courage to declare for
him, and the strength to suffer for his name. Peter,
who refuses to hearken to the voice of Christ in or-
der to know himself, will learn, from the crowing of
the cock, that too great a confidence leads to a pre-
cipice.

CHAPTER XIV.

Sect. I. — Christ the Way, the Truth, and the Life,
He who sees Him, sees the Father also.

" 1. Let not your heart be troubled : ye believe
in God, believe also in me."

A pastor who has been obliged to give the minds
of his flock some trouble and disturbance, either by
acquainting them with some dreadful truths, or with
his own departure, ought to use his endeavours to
strengthen and support them. Our blessed Lord
never gives human consolations. All his ways are
ways of faith, and he never takes souls out of them,
but still causes them to walk more and more therein.
He does not forbid the trouble of the senses, which

x2

484 ST. JOHN.

nature cannot always restrain, but the trouble of the
heart, which generally proceeds either from want of
faith in the providence of God, or from want of trust
in the grace of Christ, which are the two foundations
of Christian hope. Is it not sufficient to calm and
assuage all our troubles, to know that we have God
for our Father, and his Son for our Mediator ? We
can lose nothing so long as we retain faith, because
this renders even Jesus Christ present to us, in a
more holy and powerful manner than if he were ouly
visibly present. We must often pray for this faith,
which quiets and fortifies the heart. It is by Jesus
Christ that we have access to God, and that God
comes to us : let us therefore never separate our
faith and confidence in Christ, from those which we
have in God.

" 2. In my Father's house are many mansions :
if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to
prepare a place for you."

The weak must be encouraged with the hope of
reward, which is not designed only for the most per-
fect. The reward is answerable to the virtue, and
the different degrees of glory to those of charity.
What more solid comfort and consolation can we
possibly have, than to hope that Christ will vouch-
safe to share with us the habitation which he enjoys
in heaven, in the very bosom of his Father ! How
could we have ever hoped for so sublime and advan-
tageous a place, had not Christ undertaken to pre-
pare it for us ! How many mysteries are contained
in this expression ! It is thus, to avoid afflicting
his disciples, that he hides from them that painful and
humbling preparation, which is the sacrifice of the

CHAPTER XIV. 485

cross — a sacrifice truly preparatory, because it merits
every thing, and applies nothing ; as that of the
eucharist merits nothing, and applies every thing,
by means of the Holy Ghost and of his grace.

" 3. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I
will come again, and receive you unto myself; that
where I am, there ye may be also."

The death of the righteous is nothing else but
their re-union with Jesus Christ their head. This
is the thing for which all these mysteries prepare us,
and for which we ought to prepare ourselves by his
grace. The first preparation is upon the cross, by
means of the sacrifice. The second is in heaven, by
the ascension, and the mission of the Holy Ghost,
which is the fruit both of the sacrifice and of the
ascension. Both the resurrection and ascension,
which seem to be only for Jesus Christ, are designed
also for us, as much as the mysteries of humiliation
and suffering. The third preparation is in ourselves,
which ought to answer the two former, of which it
is both a participation and an imitation, by the mor-
tification and destruction of sin, (which are the effect
and imitation of the death on the cross,) and by the
internal sanctification of charity and other Christian
virtues. This sanctification is the beginning of our
participation of the glorious parts of Christ's sacrifice,
namely, the resurrection and ascension, (Eph. ii. 6.)
which will not be fully accomplished in us until his
return, when he will receive us unto himself, when
he will fix us in the place which he has prepared for
us, and when we shall be with him where he is.
Let us not lose the time of this preparation, if we
desire to have any share in this re-union.

486 ST. JOHN.

" 4. And whither I go ye know, and the way ye
know. 5. 1f Thomas saith unto him, Lord, we
know not whither thou goest; and how can we know
the way ?"

God frequently out of mercy conceals his graces
whilst he bestows them on us : but it is also fre-
quently our own ingratitude and infidelity which
conceal them from us. There are a great many
particular truths comprehended under the faith in
Christ, which are unfolded and become clear as oc-
casion requires, and in proportion as piety applies
our minds to them, or as God opens our understand-
ing. Our continual application to sensible objects,
easily causes us to forget those spiritual truths which
have been often taught us. The Spirit of God
gives us sometimes only a small glimpse of certain
truths, on purpose to raise in us a desire to know
them, and to cause us to fit and prepare our minds
for the knowledge of them by prayer, application,
and an humble confession of our own weakness.

" 6. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the
truth, and the life : no man cometh unto the Father,
but by rae."

Jesus is the way by his example; the truth by
his word; and the life by his grace. The new and
living way, wherein faith causes us to walk ; the in-
fallible truth of good things to come, for which we
must hope; and the eternal life, which must be the
sole object of our love. Out of this way, there is
nothing but wandering; without this truth, nothing
but error and deceit; and without this life, nothing
but death. By means of sin, the heart has lost the
life of righteousness; the understanding, the light

CHAPTER XIV. 487

of truth ; and the senses, the assistance of the crea-
tures which served as a way to lead us to God. All
three are restored to us in Jesus Christ : the way of
heaven discovered and laid open to our senses by his
life and mysteries; the truth, which enlightens our
understanding; and the life, which re-animates our
heart. Let us take great care not to transfer to any
creature that which Christ appropriates to himself
exclusively of every thing besides. He alone is our
way, as our Mediator by his blood ; he alone is the
truth of the promises, which are fulfilled only in him
as the Head of the elect, and in us as his members;
and he alone is our life, as being the principle of the
Christian life, and of all the actions thereof by his
grace. That man well deserves to lose himself, to
be deceived, and to be deprived of life, who keeps
not close to thee alone, O eternal way, in which alone
those find themselves who have gone astray; incar-
nate truth, which alone enlightenest those who are in
darkness; celestial and divine life, which alone givest
immortal life to the dead ? Thou art the divine way,
which earnest to weary thyself in seeking sinners; the
truth, which didst vouchsafe to descend into our
darkness; and the life, which didst humble thyself
so low as to die for us.

" 7. If ye had known me, ye should have known
my Father also : and * from henceforth ye know him,
and have seen him." [# Fr, Quickly ye shall.]

Who could hear the heavenly doctrine, and be-
hold the miraculous works of Christ, without being
convinced that he spoke the truth, in assuring them
that he was the Son of God ; to be convinced of
which was the same thing as to know that he had a

488 ST. JOHN.

Father of whom he was begotten. We well deserve
to be upbraided in the same manner by Christ, we
who make it appear so little in our lives, that we
know him as our Master, our Saviour, and our all.
What hope, what love ought to answer our faith,
were it as lively and active as it ought to be ! Our
knowledge in this life is very obscure and imperfect :
we can only comfort ourselves with the hope of en-
joying that divine light which is to disperse all our
darkness. How desirable is this " quickly," and how
long a time does it seem to those who are impatient
to leave their state of childhood, and to arrive at the
knowledge of the perfect man ! Come quickly, O
thou light of my heart; but haste likewise to prepare
this heart of mine, and to purify it in that manner
which is worthy of thyself.

" 8. ^f Philip saith unto him, Lord, show us the
Father, and it sufficeth us."

Whoever sees the Son, sees the Father also, by
reason of the essential relation betwixt their persons,
and of the unity of their nature. Yes, Lord, it
belongs to thee alone to show us the Father, since
thou alone knowest him, since thou only art his co-
eternal idea, the character of his substance, the. in-
visible image of his perfections, the light which comes
from that light, and which alone can shine into
created minds. Show us the Father now by a lively
faith, and in such a manner as may cause us to love
him, to the end that thou mayest show him to us
one day in his glory, in causing us to possess him.
God only is necessary to man, and he alone is suffi-
cient for him. It is the greatest mark of the cor-
ruption of man's heart, to see him continually pursue

CHAPTER XIV. 489

false happiness, and despise the only true good, and
the only felicity of his soul. When, O my God,
shall I cease wearying myself in these unprofitable
searches and pursuits? Say to my soul, I am thy
salvation and thy life, I am the supreme good which
thou seekest elsewhere, and which thou canst never
find but in me alone.

" 9. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long
time with you, and yet hast thou not known me,
Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father;
and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?"

God has been so long time with us, so long has
he showed himself to us by his benefits, and made
his power, wisdom, and goodness manifest in his
creatures; and so long has he urged us by his in-
spirations, his chastisements, and his word, to own
him for our God, and to obey him as our Father and
our Lord, and do we not yet know him ? Let us
open the eyes of our faith, and not those of our flesh.
We cannot see him that is invisible, but only with
invisible eyes; and we see his same divine essence,
his same power, and his same perfections, in the
Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. 1 believe
this, O Jesus, and yet I still make this address to
thee, " Show me the Father," because I see him only
as in a glass, or through a veil. When will this
veil be taken away ?

" 10. Believest thou not that I am in the Father,
and the Father in me? the words that I speak unto
you, I speak not of myself: but the Father, that
dwelleth in me, he doeth the works."

Here is nothing human, nothing which is carnal.
Let reason submit itself to the yoke of faith, to adore

x3

490 ST. JOHN.

mysteries which it cannot comprehend. A God,
who is the very same being with his Son, and yet is
not the same person ; a Son, who dwelleth in his
Father, and his Father in him, and who yet are
really distinct one from the other. A Son, who re-
ceives every thing, even being itself from his Father,
without the least indigency, dependence, or posteri-
ority ; and a Father, who gives and communicates
whatever he is to his Son, without giving him be-
ginning, and without parting with any thing which
he gives to his co-eternal, and consubstantial Son,
and working together with him by the same almighty
power. These are truths, in attempting to fathom
which, reason loses itself. Let us learn from truth
itself, not to speak as of ourselves, since of ourselves
we have nothing but falsehood and sin. Let us
likewise learn to refer ultimately to God all the good
we do, since it is he who does it in us, and who does
all the good works which we do by a kind of unity
of principle and operation, which represents and
honours that betwixt the Father and the Son : the
same good action being entirely God's by his grace,
and entirely our own by our will.

" II. Believe me that I am in the Father, and
the Father in me: or else believe me for the very
works' sake."

The power with which Christ spoke in testifying
the truth of his divinity, and in showing plainly that
he knew the bottom of the heart, might have been
sufficient to prove the truth of his incarnation; but
his external works were invincible proofs thereof.
Let us make it appear by our life and actions, that
the Spirit of God lives and works in us; that the

CHAPTER XIV. 491

works of the members are not unworthy of the Plead ;
and that the manners of the children evidently show
that God is their Father. An excellent method to
increase and strengthen our faith, or at least to keep
it from growing weak, is, to read in the gospel the
miracles of Jesus Christ with respect and reverence.

" 12. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that be-
lieveth on me, the works that I do shall he do also;
and greater works than these shall he do; because
I go unto my Father."

Faith puts as it were the power of God into our
hands. Our blessed Lord reserves the greatest
miracles for his apostles and other holy persons, on
the following accounts: — 1. That there might be less
room to attribute those miracles to them. 2. To
show that he has not less power on earth, than when
he was present here in a visible manner. 3. To
supply the want of that impression which was made
by the visible presence of his sacred humanity. 4.
Because his state of glory, and the establishment of
his kingdom among the nations which had not known
God, required more illustrious effects of his power;
in like manner as he had given such extraordinary
instances thereof, in bringing his people out of Egypt,
and in establishing the Jewish religion. 5. Because
it is only in a certain sense that by his death he
merited to be the mediator and advocate of men, and
that, by his resurrection, he entered upon his func-
tions of priest, of intercessor, and of head. The
mysteries of his resurrection, ascension, and sitting
at the right hand of God, are mysteries which ou^ht
to be the foundation of great trust and confidence in
Christians : but they do not sufficiently apply their
minds to the contemplation of them.

492 ST. JOHN.

" 13. And whatsoever ye shall ask* in my name,
that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in
the Son." [* Fr. The Father.] '

Whatever we ask, and whatever we do in the
name of Christ, he himself does it in us. He here
lays down three conditions for the obtaining of mira-
eles : — 1. They must be asked of the Father with
the hope and confidence of children; in the name of
Christ, as belonging to him; and by his merits, his
mysteries, and in consideration of his love for his
Father, of his zeal for his glory, and of his sacrifice
offered for his church. 2. Men must be far from
imagining that the miracles are wrought by the holy
persons themselves; but must believe that it is God
who works them by Jesus Christ. 3. They must
have no other aim but the glory of God in Jesus
Christ, and no sinister views of interest and of
passion. For God will never make his power sub-
servient to any thing but his own glory.

Sect. II. — Love. The Comforter. The keeping
of the Commandments.

" 14. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will
do it."

We must pray to God only through Jesus Christ,
by his Spirit, by his merits, and in his person, as be-
ing his members. It is a great indignity to Christ,
and an instance of irreligion, to put more, or even as
much confidence, in the saints as in him, who is the
Holy One of God. It is but an ill way of making
our address to him who is able to do whatever we ask
of him, to ascribe his power to his servants. Pastors
do not instruct the people sufficiently iu this great

CHAPTER XIV. 493

truth, that Christ promises to give only to those who
ask in his name, nor inform them what it is to pray
in that manner.

" 15. % If ye love me, keep my commandments :"

Let us not flatter ourselves that we love God, if
we do not keep his commandments ; neither let us
flatter ourselves that we can fulfil his commandments,
if we do not love him. The observance of the law
is the proof of our love; but love is the principle of
that observance. A mercenary person, who keeps
the law only for the sake of some temporal interest,
and a slave, who does it merely for fear of punish-
ment, are hypocrites, who love only themselves and
not God ; and who give God nothing but external
actions, and devote their heart to the creature. Ex-
amine your hearts, examine your works, if you are
desirous to know what you are in the sight of God.
The one must be answerable to the other.

" 16. And I will pray the Father, and he shall
give you another Comforter, that he mav abide with
you for ever ;"

The Holy Ghost comforts the faithful, in inspir-
ing them with confidence to address themselves to
God, as to a Father full of kindness and goodness ;
in shedding abroad in their hearts the love of the
good things of eternity, which only can afford true
consolation ; and in rendering them victorious over
the temptation of sin, which is the only evil which
ought to afflict us. Can this double advantage, aris-
ing from the return of Christ to his Father, be suf-
ficiently esteemed and valued by us ? He performs,
in the presence of God, the office of Mediator and
Advocate on our hehalf; and from thence he sends

494 ST. JOHN.

his Spirit into the world, to supply his place therein,
and to act and fight for us. He still sends this Com-
forter daily into our souls; and he will never leave
or forsake us, if we do not first forsake him. This is
not only the fruit of the labours, the prayers, and the
death of Christ, as the victim of God slain upon the
cross ; but likewise of the prayer which he offers con-
tinually for us in heaven, as our High Priest. O
divine Spirit, who art the Comforter, render us
worthy of thy consolation ! and since this is only for
those who love Jesus Christ and keep his law, ren-
der us faithful in the performance of these duties.

" 17. Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world
cannot receive, because it secth him not, neither
knoweth him : but ye know him ; for he dwelleth
with you, and shall be in you."

The Spirit of truth can have no concord with the
spirit of the world, which is governed by the spirit of
error. He is perfectly known only by those who
have him in their heart. The world cannot receive
him, because the spirit of lying, double-dealing, and
deceit, which reigns therein, is utterly inconsistent
and irreconcilable with the Spirit of truth, sincerity,
and uprightness. The Holy Ghost was at first pro-
raised to the church as the Spirit of truth, because
truth is the foundation of the church. He is the
internal teacher of truth by his operation in the heart,
as Jesus Christ was the external teacher thereof by
his word. It is he who gives to the church the
truth of the promises, of which the synagogue had
only the types and shadows. Carnal men have
no other eyes but those of flesh : they know and
love nothing but sensual and carnal objects; and it

CHAPTER XIV. 495

is the corruption of their hearts which renders them
unworthy to receive this incorruptible Spirit. But
nothing can render them worthy to receive him, but
that only which proceeds from him, either residing
or working in the heart.

" 18. I will not leave you comfortless; I will
come to you."

The church then, our mother, so long as she does
not see her Lord, is a widow; and we are orphans,
so long as we continue without seeing our Father.
If we are insensible of this absence, we deserve not
the name of children. Our Father is invisible, but
he is notwithstanding continually present with his
children, if they have faith. Our duty as orphans is
to weep with our mother, to lift up our hands to-
wards our Father, to depend upon him, to invoke
him, and earnestly to desire his return. Come then,
Lord Jesus, and leave us no longer orphans in this
vale of tears and miseries.

" 19. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me
no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall
live also."

As the absence of Christ during the time of his
burial, being only three days, was but a little while
in respect of the apostles ; so, with respect to our-
selves, it is but a little while to the end of our life,
or even to the end of the world. For every thing
passes away as a dream, a shadow, or a flash of light-
ning. It is a matter of great importance to all per-
sons whatever, frequently to meditate upon the short-
ness of time : to the righteous, to comfort them un-
der the persecutions of the world ; to the wicked, to
excite them to prevent the wrath of God by repent-

496 ST. JOHN.

ance. We shall see God: what tears ought not
this hope to wipe away from our eyes ! The world
shall not see him : what good things of this life can
afford it any comfort under so great a misfortune !
Because Christ lives, we shall live also. Our life
and glory are joined to those of our Head. His
resurrection is the cause and the pattern of ours, and
our life a participation of his. Cause me therefore
to live in, by, and according to thee, O Jesus, my
life and my eternal glory !

" 20. At that day ye shall know that I am in my
Father, and ye in me, and I in you."

This verse is an abridgment of the Christian theo-
logy, by the knowledge which it gives us of the Tri-
nity, of the Incarnation, and of our own Sanctification.
1. Of the Trinity : because it is here declared that
the Son is in the Father by the unity of his nature
with him, and by the eternal birth which his Father
gives him in his bosom, wherein he is, together with
him, the principle from which the Holy Ghost pro-
ceeds. 2. Of the Incarnation : because we here
learn that our nature is in the eternal Word, the
Son of God, by a personal union; that the church is
in Christ, as his body, and that all Christians are his
members incorporated with him. 3. Of Sanctifica-
tion: because Jesus Christ is in us by his Spirit of
adoption, to sanctify and to govern us, and to com-
municate to us, as the head to its members, the life
of grace and of glory. Accomplish in me, O my God,
these last mysteries of thy love and thy mercy !
Vouchsafe to work that quickly in my heart which
thou intendest to work in it at that day ! When
will that blessed day come, wherein nothing shall

CHAPTER XIV. 497

continue veiled from our eyes, but we shall have a
clear and distinct view of all things?

M 21. He that hath my commandments, and keep-
eth them, he it is that loveth me; and he that loveth
me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him,
and will manifest myself to him."

The love of God towards us is both the cause and
the reward of our fidelity in keeping his law. He
will love none but those eternally whom he loved first.
His love will crown only those whom it supported in
the combat, and rendered faithful in their obedience
to his law. Oar love of God is the source of the
true light, and of the saving knowledge of Jesus
Christ in this world, and of the beatific sight of him
in the world to come. It is neither study, nor wit,
nor learning, which render us acceptable to God;
but fidelity in performing his will. A soul which
walks exactly in the way which God has pointed out
to it, has, by means of a practical and sanctifying
knowledge, a deeper insight into divine things, than
those learned men of the world who know every thing,
except how to love God and to save their own souls.
" 22. Judas saith unto him, (not Iscariot,) Lord,
how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and
not unto the world?"

There are abundance of Christians, even at this
day, who, like this apostle, have very gross notions
concerning the mysteries of religion. When the
things of God are the subject of discourse, we must
raise our minds above the senses and all the objects
thereof. It is to the soul that the manifestation here
spoken of by Christ is to be made. It is in the heart
that his kingdom must be established by his Spirit.

498 ST. JOHN.

The world, which has no soul nor heart but only for
sensible and perishing things, can neither receive this
Spirit, nor have any share in this kingdom.

" 23. Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man
love me, he will keep my words : and my Father will
love him, and we will come unto him, and make our
abode with him.',

A faithful obedience to the law of God, which is
the effect and mark of our love, is likewise the thing
which increases and improves it. It is not a transient
love, nor the keeping of God's word in some parti-
cular instances, which can engage him to make his
abode in us as in his temple ; but it is the constant
practice of his precepts, and the faithful performance
of all his commandments. God counts not those
among the number of his faithful and constant friends,
who make no difficulty of betraying him frequently
by sin. This great and divine visit, which God
makes to none but the elect, and by which he draws
them to himself, is only for those who love him to
the end. A soul which, by a holy ambition, aspires
to be the eternal temple of the ever-blessed Trinity,
ought to have, as it were, an eternal disposition of
doing the will of God. Whatever sanctity we de-
sire in visible temples, let us preserve the same in our
hearts; let us do in the latter what is done in the
former, and banish out of the one whatever is not
suffered in the other. God alone can enable us to
comprehend what it is to contract as it were a friend-
ship with him, to receive him into our heart, and to
entertain him there in all his majesty and greatness.
Let us serve the world, if it have any thing to con-
fer upon us which is comparable to this. If none

CHAPTER XIV. 499

but God can advance us to such honour, let us serve
him alone.

" 24. He that loveth me not keepeth not my say-
ings : and the word which ye hear is not mine, but
the Father's which sent me."

See here the question of Jude resolved. The
world shall not see God, because it does not love
him, nor keep his word. Whoever imagines that
he can please God, and keep his commandments,
without loving him, directly contradicts the very words
of truth itself. Let us ultimately refer every thing
to God, as the Fountain of all good, after the ex-
ample of his only Son. His fidelity in observing the
commands of his Father, is a just ground of shame
and confusion to all those who do not obey him. A
God becomes obedient, and a creature absolutelyre-
fuses subjection. The obedience which we yield to
the gospel is a homage which we pay to the truth and
the wiil of God, to the mission of his Son, and to
the foundation of that mission, namely, his eternal
generation.

Sect. III. — The Holy Ghost teaches all things.
The Peace of God not of the World. The Love
and Obedience of Christ.

" 25. These things have I spoken unto you, being
yet present with you. 26. But the Comforter, which
is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my
name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all
things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said
unto you."

The Holy Ghost, who, proceeding from Christ as
the head, diffuses himself into his members, is sent

500 ST. JOHN.

from the Father by the Son, to enlighten their inward
parts, and to teach them all things. In whatever
relates to salvation we depend upon the Holy Ghost,
as the Spirit of Jesus Christ, sent in his name, and
through his merits, and given to him alone for him-
self and his members. There is no grace but what
is given in the name and for the sake of Christ : for
God cannot look upon us as we are in ourselves or
in Adam, to any other end than to punish us ; nor
can he show us any mercy and favour, but only as he
looks upon us in Jesus Christ. The Holy Ghost
and his grace are necessary for us in all respects.
The understanding has need of him, in order to
know the will of God, and to receive comfort and
consolation in this state of exile. The heart stands
in need of him; because it is this Spirit alone who
can teach it to do the divine will, by inspiring into it
a love thereof. The memory has likewise as much
need of him, to bring all things to its remembrance,
and to fill it with the knowledge of salvation.

" 27. 51 Peace I leave with you, my peace I give
unto you : not as the world giveth, give I unto you.
Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be
afraid."

The peace of the world consists in rest, joy, plenty,
and delights : the peace of Christ, in submission to the
will of God, in the joy of charity, and in the hope of
good things which are invisible. The carnal man is
troubled, afraid, and ready to despair, when he is de-
prived of temporal satisfactions, in which he places his
happiness and finds his peace : the heart of a Chris-
tian preserves its peace and tranquillity, even when
it is deprived of Christ, as to his most sensible pre-

CHAPTER XIV. 501

sence and consolation. The world either gives peace
only in fruitless and barren desires, or else gives only
a false and counterfeit peace ; but Christ performs
what he speaks, and his words produce their effect
even in the heart, by fortifying it against the threats
of the world, and against every thing which may dis-
turb or interrupt its friendship with God. Let those
who love the world seek that peace which it gives:
thine, O Jesus, is sufficient for me. Put me into
possession of it, I beseech thee, since thou art pleased
I should enjoy it by a legacy of thy will, by a deed
of gift made in thy life-time, and by right of inheri-
tance.

" 28. Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go
away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me,
ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Fa-
ther : for my Father is greater than I."

The interests of Christ ought to be dearer to us
than our own ; but we can never seek the former with-
out finding the latter. It is our duty to rejoice, in
that God has more power to take away the ignomi-
nies and humiliations of his Son, than men had to
bring them upon him ; that he has more power to
glorify his Son, than even his Son had to humble
himself. His glory is ours, since we are his members ;
but then for this very reason his humiliations and
sufferings ought likewise to be ours by imitation, as
they are by the application which he makes of them
to us. O inconceivable love of our blessed Master,
thus to conceal from his disciples that which was most
grievous and afflictive in his departure, and to show
them only the advantages thereof ! There is nothing

502 ST. JOHN.

wherein the greatness and magnificence of God shine
forth more illustriously, than in the resurrection of his
Son and of his members, by which he has found out a
way to raise dust and ashes even to the throne of his
majesty, and to communicate his glory to a piece of
earth : for of this the very body of Christ is com-
posed ; and it was in clothing himself therewith that
he became less than his Father.

" 29. And now I have told you before it come
to pass, that, when it is come to pass, ye might be-
lieve."

Faith is the end of prophecies. Nothing is more
proper to strengthen our faith in relation to those
good things to come which we expect, than to con-
sider how every thing which we have already re-
ceived was foretold. The prediction of future events
is one proof of the divinity of Christ. All the
ancient prophecies, and even those of Christ during
his life, tend to establish the belief of his resurrec-
tion ; and this resurrection, being come to pass
exactly as it was foretold, gives the strongest security
imaginable for all which is to follow, even till the
resurrection of his members, and the full completion
of his mystical body. Nothing happens from time
to time, but what has been foretold: but we take no
notice of it, though it was foretold on purpose to
strengthen and increase our faith.

" 30. Hereafter I will not talk much with you :
for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing
in me."

They are not in the least mistaken who attribute
to the devil whatever is done by the spirit of this
world, since Jesus Christ himself attributes it to the

CHAPTER XIV. 503

same author. He is the prince and the head of all
those who follow his maxims, and act by his spirit:
as Christ, though in a very different manner, is the
Head of those who live according to his gospel, and
follow the impulse of his grace. The men of this
world imagine, that in following their passions they
do their own will; whereas in reality they only obey
that of the prince of this world, whose desires and
designs they gratify and fulfil. A man therefore
who is devoted to the world, and who follows the
spirit thereof, how great soever he may appear to
carnal eyes, is but a very vile and miserable object to
the eyes of faith ; since he belongs to the devil, and
is a slave to his will. The prince of this world can
claim nothing in Christ, because Christ is not of this
world; none being of it but by sin. He submitted
his temporal life to the power of the devil, that he
might by his death deliver us from slavery and eter-
nal death. That which renders holy persons vic-
torious over the devil, is their constant opposition to
the world, and their fidelity in renouncing every
thing which is according to its spirit.

" 31. But that the world may know that I love
the Father ; and as the Father gave me command-
ment, even so I do. Arise, let us go hence."

Christ goes to die and to sacrifice himself, out of
love, out of obedience, and with courage. For
whom are this example and this sacrifice both of love
and of obedience designed, if not for Christians?
That which he manifested at the time of his death,
he likewise made manifest throughout the whole
course of his life : and if we desire that our death
should, like that of our Head, be a sacrifice of love

504 ST. JOHN.

and obedience, we must take care to make our life so
too. This is not a counsel exhorting us to perfec-
tion, but a law which lays upon us an indispensable
obligation : since all our actions ought to have the
love of God for their principle and motive, his glory
for their end, and his will for their rule; which
plainly shows us in what we should seek and glorify
him, and by what we ought to testify the sincerity of
our love towards him.

CHAPTER XV.

Sect. I. — Christ the vi?ie, and the Faithful the
branches. Life and joy in him alone,

" 1. I am the true vine, and my Father is the
husbandman.,,

Christ is the true vine, the excellent, spiritual,
and heavenly vine, of which all others are but types
and shadows : the vine planted by the hand of God
in the womb of the virgin, in the field of the world,
and cultivated by the same hand. This vine does
not produce a bitter kind of fruit like that of the
synagogue; but a wine, by which the world is re-
deemed, washed, sanctified, nourished, strengthened
on earth, and, as it were, inebriated in heaven.
Christ resigned himself up to the hand of his Father,
to be cultivated and pruned according to his will.
Let us adore this heavenly husbandman ; and since
we are branches of his vine, let us submit ourselves
entirely to his care and management : for if he do
not cultivate us after his divine manner, we can be
nothing but unprofitable branches.

CHAPTER XV. 505

" 2. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit
he taketh away ; and every branch that beareth fruit
he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit."

Christian professors without works, are branches
without fruit. That person has no faith, who chooses
rather to be one day cut off and taken away from the
body of Christ, than to be exercised and purged by
the afflictions of this life, in order to bear the fruit
of good works. Both good and bad branches are
joined to the vine, but both do not bear fruit : the
latter will not be separated from the vine for ever,
till the great day of separation comes. There is no
branch but what must feel the pruning-knife ; but
woe to those branches which the husbandman passes
by in this life, and about which he will use the prun-
ing-knife to no other end but to cut them off entirely
from the stock. The sufferings of the righteous and
those of the wicked produce very different effects :
the one are the better for them, and the other the
worse. Whoever refuses to be pruned or purged,
refuses to bear any fruit, and is willing to be cut off
and taken away. Let us take great care that we do
not reject the hand of this charitable husbandman.

" 3. Now ye are clean through the word which I
have spoken unto you."

The word of Christ cleanses and purifies the heart
of a Christian, by enlightening it, by showing it the
true happiness, and the means of arriving at it, and
by inducing it to renounce and amend its faults. It
is a sort of knife, which serves to cut off from the
branches all superfluous shoots, and which we must
always have in our hand during this life. When
God does not prune his vine by afflictions, he does
Vol. III. Y 51

506 ST. JOHN.

it by his word and his grace, in causing it to prune
itself by mortification and repentance. We are in-
deed clean already, when Christ has washed us iu
his blood : but even in the fairest branch there still
remains something to be pruned and taken off.
Nothing is more dangerous than to think ourselves
altogether clean and pure in this world, and to ima-
gine that we have finished the whole work which is
to be done in our heart.

t;4. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch
cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the
vine ; no more can ye, except ye abide in me."

Observe here two things absolutely necessary :
The one, that we continue closely united to Jesus
Christ by faith and charity, that we may live in and
of him ; the other, that we receive from him the
power to do good, because we cannot possibly do any
of ourselves without the influence of his grace and
his Spirit. It is not enough to be united to Christ
our head by baptism, we must likewise unite our-
selves to him by prayer, by good desires, by medita-
tion, and by the practice of his gospel, which ren-
ders him more effectually present to us. It is very
proper, in order to renew in us the spirit of baptism,
to offer up on ail occasions this address of the primi-
tive Christians: *I renounce thee, Satan, with all
thy pomps and works; and I unite myself, O Jesus,
to thee, and give myself entirely to thy Spirit.' To
separate ourselves from his church, which is his body,
is to separate ourselves from him and from his Spirit.
And what fruit can we possibly bear in a state of
separation from this body, and without this Spirit,
but only the fruit of malediction and of death ?

CHAPTER XV. 50T

" 5. I am the vine, ye are the branches : he that
abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth
much fruit; for without me ye can do nothing."

Admirable unity this of the Head with its mem-
bers, of Christ with his church; which make but
one, one only body as it were, one man, and one
vine. Christ causes his members to bring forth
much fruit, when he causes them to lead a life truly
Christian ; when he animates all their actions with
his Spirit, even such as are most ordinary and com-
mon ; and when he engages them in the constant
performance of good works. To this end he con-
tinually infuses his virtue into them, as the head into
its members, and as the vine into its branches, a vir-
tue which always precedes, accompanies, and follows
their good works, and without which they can be in
no manner acceptable to God. The grace of Christ,
the efficacious principle which produces all kind of
good, is necessary to every good action, great or
small, easy or difficult, and that both to our begin-
ning, continuing, and finishing thereof. Without
it, we not only do nothing, but it is certain that we
can do nothing.

" 6. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as
a branch, and is withered; and men gather them,
and cast them into the fire, and they are burned."

Whoever abides not in Christ, and dies in that
state, is fit for nothing but the fire, like a branch cut
off and withered. That person who does not con-
tinue united to the Head, will, 1. Be severed from
the body, and have no share in the good things be-
longing to it. 2. He will be deprived of the juice
and sap of grace. 3. He will be abandoned to the

y2

508 ST. JOHN.

devil. 4. He will be cast into the eternal fire.
And, 5. He will burn there continually, without ever
being consumed. — Whoever presumes he can bear
fruit of himself, is not in the vine : and whoever is
not in the vine, is not in Jesus Christ : and whoever
is not in Jesus Christ, is not a Christian: (St.
Augustine.) Can any man without horror reflect on
this threatening of the Son of God? And yet the
world is full of these withered branches, namely,
professed libertines, atheists, bad Christians, schis-
matics, and heretics. Let us bewail the condition of
these blind wretches, who will not so much as take
the pains to examine whether they be in the vine, or
be cut off from it; or who even flatter themselves
that they are in it, and bear fruit, when in reality
they are nothing but withered branches, ready to be
cast into the fire. Let us likewise bewail, or at least
fear our own condition.

" 7. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in
you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done
unto you."

Observe here three sorts of union, or three con-
ditions, in order to obtain from God that which we
desire : — 1. We must be united to Christ by a lively
faith, and by charity. 2. We must be united to
him by a love of his truth, and a frequent meditation
upon his word, which is the rule of our desires, as
being the book of God's designs, to which all our
prayers and desires ought to be conformable. It
is not sufficient to have faith and charity, we must
continually nourish them with the word of God. To
read it carelessly, and for fashion's sake, is directly
contrary to that reverence which is due to it, and

CHAPTER XV. 509

to our own spiritual advantage. It must be im-
printed strongly on our minds, or, as it were, engraved
deep in our hearts, that it may abide therein. No-
thing but love can perform this, as nothing but love
can cause us to practise it. 3. The third condition
necessary to our being heard is prayer. It is by this
that the branch draws the juice and sap of the vine,
and receives from thence more plentiful nourishment.
God leaves to those who love him the liberty to ask,
and promises to give them every thing : because they
neither love nor ask any thing but his will; and be-
cause the Spirit who prays in them is the very same
who hears their prayers.

" 8. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear
much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples."

Here are three motives which cause our prayers to
be heard : the glory of God, the edification of the
church, and the sanctification of souls. These are
three conditions always included in a true Christian
prayer. Wherever the first is, which comprehends
the other two, God always grants whatever is asked
of him. All the glory which God is pleased to have
out of himself, is chiefly reduced to that which he
procures himself, by the operation of his grace in the
hearts of men on earth, and by the manifestation of
his glory in heaven. And indeed the production of
the fruits of his Spirit in a soul, and the forming of
one single Christian, are more to his glory than the
creation of the material world, and the production of
that wonderful variety of flowers and fruits : because
it is by the former, that the mystical body, the spi-
ritual world, is formed, in and by which he designs to
be eternally glorified, of which his Son is the Head,

510 ST. JOHN.

and his Spirit the soul. Let us be under no uneasi-
ness how to find out ways of glorifying God : there
is none better or more necessary, than to use our ut-
most endeavours in promoting our own sanctification
and salvation, and likewise that of others. This is
the great means chosen and appointed of God for
the promoting of his glory, and is the fruit of the
labours of the apostles, and the triumph of the grace
of Christ. We cannot neglect this means without
neglecting to glorify God.

" 9. As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved
you : continue ye in my love."

We owe every thing to the free love of Christ to-
wards us, as Christ owes every thing to that of his
Father, by which he filled him with all the fulness of
the Godhead. He chooses us to be his members, and
on purpose to work in and by us all the good we do ;
as his Father chose him to be our Head, and on pur-
pose to work in and by him the miracles which he
wrought. God loves his Son, and us in him. Christ
loves his Father, and us for his sake. Let us, in like
manner, love God in Christ, and Christ for the sake
of God. The love of God, of Christ, and of a Chris-
tian, make, as it were, a triple knot which shall never
be broken in heaven, being that wherein eternal life
and the great mystery of a blessed eternity do con-
sist. Miserable is he, even in this world, who does
not part with all to continue in this love ! Thou
God of my heart, who didst first love me, cause me
to continue with perseverance in thy love, that thy
love may continue eternally in me.

" 10. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide
in my love; even as I have kept my Father's com-
mandments, and abide in his love."

CHAPTER XV. - 511

The keeping of God's commandments is the only-
means to establish his love in us to all eternity.
God inseparably annexes his love, and the eternity
thereof, to the fulfilling of his law, and that even
with respect to Jesus Christ himself. Observe here
the love and obedience of the Son towards his Father,
which could not possibly cease, nor be interrupted for
one single moment, and which, notwithstanding, merits
the eternal continuance of the Father's love towards
the Son. The more absolute and infallible the di-
rection of the Word was in relation to the human
will of Christ, and the more efficacious and all-power-
ful the operation of the Holy Ghost was in his heart,
the more free was his will, his love the more worthy
of God, and his actions the more meritorious. The
fidelity of my love towards God, and the adherence
of my heart to his law, can be nothing but the effect
of thy almighty grace, O Jesus : vouchsafe, I be-
seech thee, to produce this effect in me, in honour
of that which thy Father produced in thee.

" 11. These things have I spoken unto you, that
my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might
be full."

As the love of God is always followed by the ob-
servance of his law, so the observance of his law is
inseparable from true joy of heart. This is the joy
of Christ, the Christian joy, the effect of *his grace,
the fruit of his Spirit, and the seed and bud of that
eternal joy which he will diffuse into his. members,
with which he will, as it were, inebriate his elect, and
overflow their hearts. This joy will not be full and
perfect, till charity be so too, and the law fully and
perfectly accomplished, and engraved so deep in the

512 ST. JOHN.

heart as never to be erased or blotted out. If we
desire to rejoice as true Christians, let us make the
law of God our delight and joy ; not a transient joy
which proceeds from a barren and unfruitful reading,
but that solid and substantial joy which arises from a
sincere and real love, and from an exact and perse-
vering practice. Senseless and stupid is that person
who sacrifices this joy, and the hope of that in heaven,
to a joy which is only carnal and momentary, and is
the source of a thousand vexations and inquietudes
even in this life.

Sect. II. — The commandment of Love. Friends^
not Servants. Christ's choice of the Fleet.

" 12. ^f This is my commandment, That ye love
one another, as I have loved you."

Let us then carefully remember, that the com-
mandment which is Christ's in the most peculiar man-
ner, is, That we love one another as Christ has loved
us ; that is, that we do it in and for God, to that de-
gree, as even to lay down our lives one for another.
Eternal happiness, then, does not cost so much as we
imagine, since all the commandments are reducible to
this concerning loving : to our loving our brother for
the sake of God, and God himself in our brother.
The school of God is a school of love and charity,
where Jesus Christ as man is himself the first dis-
ciple of his Father. Christ's love for us has his
Father's love to him for its pattern, (ver. 9.) and he
teaches us, as our Master, to form our love towards
our brethren, by that love which he has manifested
towards us. What a pattern is this to follow ! who
can ever come up to it? Let us comfort our-

CHAPTER XV. 513

selves : the divine Person who gave us this pattern
will cause us to imitate it, if we fix our eyes upon
him by faith, and pray to him with humility, and with
a sincere desire of following his example.

. " 13. Greater love hath no man than this, that a
man lay down his life for his friends."

How great then is the love of Christ, who laid
down his life for his enemies, and who made them
his friends by so doing, and treated them as the dearest
of his friends ! In the world there is nothing which
a man will not do to regain the favour of a powerful
enemy, of whose assistance he stands in need, or of
whose hatred he is afraid : but for a man to do this
is not to love an enemy, it is only to love himself; it
is an earnest desire and endeavour to preserve life,
instead of a disposition to lay it down for the sake of
another person. Thou alone, O Jesus, hast really
had for thy enemies the love of a disinterested friend,
without being influenced by any motives either of
fear or of hope, and even foreseeing the ingratitude
with which mankind would repay thy love. Such
an example as this can only make those despair who
do not place their hopes in thy grace : but, Lord,
thou knowest that thy grace is, through thy grace
itself, all my hope, and that I despair only of myself.

" 14. Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I
command you."

The whole of religion consists in doing the will of
God, and in observing his law : this has been at all
times, and under every dispensation, the inviolable
condition of the covenant and friendship of God with
men. Inconceivable goodness this ! He has a right
to require of us life for life ; and he is pleased to re-

y3

514 ST. JOHN.

quire nothing but our obedience ! Blind perverse-
ness, and incomprehensible ingratitude of the sinner,
who rejects this condition which makes his happiness ;
who prefers a yoke of iron, the grievous yoke of his
own will, or rather of that of the devil, to the light
and easy yoke of the will of his God; and chooses
rather to be under the tyranny of the devil, than to
have Jesus Christ for his friend ! Could we ever
have presumed to aspire at such a friendship, if Jesus
Christ had not promised it us of his own accord ?
And yet such kind advances as these are not able to
gain our heart ! This heart so corrupt and disor-
derly when it rejects the friendship- of its God, is
often so even when it accepts it. He has made the
keeping of his commandments the necessary qualifi-
cation for the honour of his friendship, and we would
have him be satisfied with something quite different.

" 15. Henceforth I call you not servants ; for the
servant knoweth not what his lord doeth : but 1 have
called you friends; for all things that I have heard
of my Father 1 have made known unto you."

The new law does not make slaves by fear, but
friends by love. The knowledge of mysteries is
reserved for Christians. The Jews had them all in
the Scripture, but then the Scripture was as a letter
in cypher, made up and sealed, of which they were
only the bearers, as being no better than servants or
slaves. It belongs to the Lamb to open this book
of mysteries, to break the seals, to decypher this
mysterious letter, and to unfold the secrets of it. If
we desire to know them perfectly, let us be the friends
of the Lamb. Let us become humble disciples of
his word, as he himself became the disciple of his

CHAPTER XV. 515

Father. All the truths of salvation were committed
to the apostles as to trustees, that they might leave
them to their successors. All truths are revealed to
the church ; but a great many will not be perfectly
unfolded till we come to heaven. The knowledge
which we shall attain in our heavenly country, will
only perfect and complete that of this life.

" J 6. Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen
you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring
forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain ; that
whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name,
he may give it you."

Let us here take notice of the conditions which
are necessary to make men the friends and confidants
of Christ, and, as it were, his ministers of state : — 1.
They must not intrude themselves, but wait for the
choice of Christ. 2. They must be ordained to the
ministry by a lawful mission. 3. Not in order to lead
an idle life, but to go and labour. 4. They must not
wait till some work is offered them, but they must go
and seek souls. 5. They must labour so as to bring
forth not leaves, but fruit ; not in order to please, but
to convert. 6. They must ultimately refer all the
fruit to God, and not to themselves out of vanity,
self-interest, &c. 7. They must do all for the sake
of the elect, who are the fruit which remains always,
because it has the eternal love of God for its root, and
stands on the firm foundation of his divine election.
8. They must take care to fortify them against the
trials and afflictions of this world, and to prepare
them for them, that they may stand their ground in
the time of temptation. 9. They must devoutly offer
to God in prayer, both their labours and the fruit of

516 ST. JOHN.

them. 10. They must present to God his elect, as
to a Father who begets them by his word and his
Spirit. 11. They must present them in the name,
and through the merits of Jesus Christ, in whom the
Father has chose them, and by whom he has pur-
chased them. 12. They must render themselves so
devoted to the interests of God in their labours, and
so familiar with him in their prayers, as to have the
confidence to ask, and the hope to obtain, all things
of him, for his glory, the good of the church, and
the salvation of souls.

" 17. These things I command you, that ye love
one another."

They must, 13. Keep up a good understanding be-
twixt ecclesiastical labourers. This is very forcibly
recommended as absolutely necessary in order to bring
forth much fruit. It is easy to maintain and preserve
it when all the servants have no other interest but
that of their master. But it can never subsist and
continue, when some of them seek their own glory,
and have their own particular views. If, instead of
a true, pure, and disinterested charity, there be no-
thing among them but an outward political peace;
this is not the thing which Christ requires. Division
among the evangelical labourers, is one of the devil's
artifices which is most successful against the work of
God. In proportion as we love this work, we ought
likewise to love the union which Christ recommends
to his disciples as the only thing: to foment division
is to carry on the devil's work, and to join with him.

CHAPTER XV. 517

Sect. III. — The World the Enemy of the Faithful.
The Jews inexcusable.

" 18. f If the world hate you, ye know that it hated
me before it hated you."

In order to be the friends of Christ, it is neces-
sary, 14. That men should expect tobe hated and per
secuted by the world. The great consolation of those
who are persecuted because they are not of the world,
is to see themselves treated as Christ was. Those
whom he vouchsafes to associate to his priesthood and
mission, ought to have the same friends and enemies
with him. Let us always remember the hatred the
world bore to the sovereign Pastor of our souls, and
we shall not be at all surprised to see the implacable
hatred it shows against its servants. Where now is
that world which hated and persecuted Christ ? And
what was it able to do, but only to promote and ad-
vance his glory and designs? The world which is
at present, will have the same success and portion ;
and we shall partake of the glory of Christ, if with
him we suffer the hatred of the world. The first
motive to induce us to suffer it patiently is, the ex-
ample of our blessed Master, and the union we have
with him.

" 19. If ye were of the world, the world would
love his own : but because ye are not of the world,
but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore
the world hateth you."

The second motive to incline us to bear the ha-
tred of the world is, that it is a means whereby we
may be assured that we are not of the world, that
we do not follow its maxims, and are not guided by

518 ST. JOHN.

its spirit. The third motive is, that whenever the
world forces us to separate ourselves from it, or hates
us because we do it, we have a certain sign that God
loves us with that eternal love by which he chooses
and separates whom he pleases from the corrupt mass
of mankind. Infinitely happy is he, whom it costs
nothing but the friendship of the world to purchase
that of Christ ! According to this word of truth,
what other thoughts can we entertain of those who
are courted by the world, and loaded with its favours,
but only that they are of the world, and are adver-
saries to Christ, if their hearts be set upon these
false and imaginary good things? To be of the
world, and to be a Christian — to be a Christian, and
yet be loved by the world, — these are two strange
paradoxes, and two propositions utterly irreconcilable
with the gospel.

" 20. Remember the word that I said unto you,
The servant is not greater than his lord. If they
have persecuted me, they will also persecute you ;
if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours
also."

A fourth motive to engage us to endure the ha-
tred of the world is, this necessary alternative, either
we must not be the servants of Christ, or else we
must be hated and persecuted by the world. We
ought always to have this maxim in our minds, as a
preservative against any fears or apprehensions of
what the world can do to us. It is the truth which
is the occasion of all the persecutions raised against
the ministers of the gospel by carnal men. To pre-
tend to preach it without offending and provoking
them, is to pretend to be more wise and powerful

CHAPTER XV. 519

than our blessed Lord himself. Let us, with pa-
tience and peace of mind, and adoring in secret the
judgments of God, bear the contempt and neglect
of his word, and the storms which are raised against
the truth; since this behaviour is peculiar to the
most holy and religious persons, who treasure up in
their hearts the maxims of Christ, and carefully ob-
serve the rules of his conduct. Impatience, mur-
muring, and vexation, proceed from the spirit of man,
not from the Spirit of God.

" 21. But all these things will they do unto you
for my name's sake, because they know not him that
sent me."

A fifth motive to induce us to bear the hatred of
the world is, because it is a great honour in the sight
of God to be exposed as a mark to the malice of the
world, for the sake of Christ and of his truth. Per-
secution ought to give us a higher degree of esteem,
affection, and acknowledgment for the grace of hav-
ing known and received the truth ; because we see
plainly in persecutors, what a misfortune it is for men
not to have received it, and to be abandoned to their
own darkness. Let us compassionate them and their
ignorance, and be very far from insulting or despising
them. We may possibly become what they are ;
and they may become as happy as ourselves. We
deserved the very same judgment which they did;
and did not deserve that mercy which alone dis-
tinguishes us from them. If ignorance does not
hinder them from being guilty, how much more guilt
do those contract, who sin in the very midst of light
and knowledge, and wickedly abuse even these by
employing them against the truth itself?

520 ST. JOHN.

" 22. If I had not come and spoken unto them,
they had not had sin : but now they have no cloak
for their sin."

Miserable is that person whom the divine benefits
only render inexcusable ! This is often the effect of
outward blessings, which the sinner abuses by his
own infidelity. The greatest of all gifts, which was
that of Christ incarnate, and the peculiar favour of
hearing him preach, rendered those inexcusable who
ought to have expected and known him by the pro-
phecies which had pointed him out. They did not
want light, since that shined in the midst of their"
darkness, and it was only by reason of that darkness
of their mind, or the hardness of their heart, and the
violence of their passions, that they rejected it. That
God did not soften their heart, nor change their cor-
rupt will, as he could have done, was a judgment
which did not in the least excuse their sin, since it
was the punishment of some other sin, and since
God owes the sinner nothing but punishment.

" 23. He that hateth me, hateth my Father also."

The good or evil which is done to Christ, or to
his members, reaches even God himself. To reject
the Son, is to reject the Father, who is one and the
same God with him. To affront an ambassador, is
an indignity offered to the prince whom he represents.
To despise a preacher, is to despise him from whom
he derives his mi>sion. The sins which are com-
mitted against the pastors and ministers of the church
have a peculiar guilt in them. God is thereby dis-
honoured as the author and institutor of religion,
and Christ as the priest and universal high priest,
of whom the other are only the representatives and
vicegerents.

CHAPTER XV. 521

" 24. If I had not done among them the works
which none other man did, they had not had sin : but
now have they both seen and hated both me and my
Father."

The more new and extraordinary any mission is,
the more reason have we to reject it, if new and ex-
traordinary miracles do not prove it to be of God.
Jesus Christ himself did not think fit that his miracles
of charity, meekness, humility, and other virtues, or
his divine manner of preaching the word of God,
should of themselves oblige men to receive him, when
he declared himself sent from God to reform reli-
gion. That man puts his salvation into the hands
of an impostor, who believes a new apostle without
miracles; but, on the other side, he shuts his ears
against the voice of God, who does not yield to the
evidence of miracles, by which God alone can speak
to men. Our having received Christ does not fix
us in a state of security ; we have reason to fear, lest
we should be condemned for not having made suffi-
cient use of his mysteries.

" 25. But this cometh to pass, that the word
might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They
hated me without a cause."

It is no other than to hate God, for a man to re-
fuse to obey him, and to oppose the establishment of
his kingdom and religion ; because to do this is to
declare himself an enemy to his glory, which depends
upon that establishment. This expression, a To
hate God," raises horror, and more still, " To hate
him without a cause." And yet we certainly hate
him, when we do not love his law, his government,
the dispensations of his providence, &c. We have

522 ST. JOHN.

no such direct thought or formal purpose ; but ac-
tions include all this. What cause can there pos-
sibly be to hate a God who is goodness itself, and
who never did any thing but good to us ? But in
sin there is neither reason nor justice.

" 26. But when the Comforter is come, whom I
will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit
of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall
testify of me :"

Let us humble ourselves in the lowest manner
imaginable before this adorable mystery of the Trinity
of the divine Persons, in which our faith has for its
object a Father without beginning, who begets a
Son — a Son, who, together with him, and by the
fruitful nature which he receives from him, produces
the Holy Spirit, who is the substantial and consub-
stantial love of the Father and of the Son, and equal
in all respects to them both. Let us adore the in-
carnation of the Word, which is likewise here inti-
mated to us; since, if Jesus Christ were not God,
he could not send the Holy Ghost, for he could send
nothing but what he produced ; neither could he re-
ceive the testimony of the Spirit of truth, if what he
had said concerning his divinity were false. Let us
with gratitude admire the mystery of the mission of
the Holy Spirit into the church, in order to form it;
into the ministers thereof, that they might co-operate
with him in the forming of it; and into the faithful,
to enable them to overcome the world, and to cause
them to enter into the structure of Christ's body.
What have we to fear? The Spirit who is in the
church and in our hearts, is stronger and more
powerful than he who is in the world and in the

CHAPTER XV. 523

wicked. He is a Spirit of comfort, who is proof
against all the tribulations, persecutions, and afflic-
tions of the world : a Spirit of truth, who is proof
against all delusion, artitice, and lying. He is a
Spirit of comfort to those who deprive themselves of
all worldly comforts, on purpose to follow Christ :
he is a Spirit of truth, because he gives men a love
and relish for it, forms the preachers and disciples
thereof, and bears testimony to the incarnate Truth
by his external gifts and his internal operation, by
miracles and Christian virtues, by his light which
makes this incarnate Truth known, and by the
strength and courage he inspires into martyrs and
confessors, to enable them to own and confess it. In
vain do men use their utmost endeavours to suppress
errors by human methods alone, without the assis-
tance of the Spirit of truth. To do this is his pe-
culiar work ; it is in him that we must put our whole
confidence, in order to have him in our heart, in our
mind, and in our mouth. We should frequently
invoke him as the Spirit of truth, in opposition to
the spirit of error and seduction.

" 27. And ye also shall bear witness, because ye
have been with me from the beginning."

There are two inseparable witnesses of the Son
of God — his Spirit and his word ; or his Spirit work-
ing both inwardly and outwardly in the church, and
his Spirit speaking by the mouth of his apostles and
ministers. This is the settled and established way
of God, with which he very rarely dispenses. There
is no truth but what comes to us by the testimony
of the apostolical word, by Scripture, or by tradition;
nor any necessary ministry but what the apostles re-

524 ST. JOHN.

ceived of Christ, in order to leave it to the church.
It was on this account that the church was founded
by those who had been with Christ from the begin-
ning, that by them and their successors the channel
of truth and of mission might be derived down to
us in an uninterrupted course from Jesus Christ, the
source and fountain thereof. Let us keep to the
channel, if we desire to keep to the fountain.

CHAPTER XVI.

Sect. I. — Persecutions foretold. The Comforter
promised.

" 1. These things have I spoken unto you, that
ye should not be offended."

The word of God is the true consolation of Chris-
tians under afflictions, and a powerful preservative
against scandal or offence. When we expect the
worst, we are surprised at nothing : but we are always
deceived, when we persuade ourselves that we shall
find the world favourable to the truths of the gospel,
and that we shall be able to reconcile it to the max-
ims of Jesus Christ. The only safe precaution we
can take, is to hope for no quarter from it, and to
rely upon nothing but the power and goodness of the
Spirit who is promised to us. Human foresight has
no other way of encouraging men, than in raising
them above dangers by the hope of avoiding them ;
the prediction of Christ gives them no other hopes
of overcoming the world, but only by assuring them
that they shall sink under the malice thereof. The
motto of the carnal man is, Overcome, that you may

CHAPTER XVI. 525

not suffer : but that of the Christian is directly con-
trary, Suffer, that you may overcome ; be trampled
upon, that you may not fall; die, that you may live.

" 2. They shall put you out of the synagogues :
yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will
think that he doeth * God service." [* Fr. Offers
a sacrifice to God.]

That is certainly a very deplorable time, when
men think they honour God by persecuting the truth
and the disciples thereof. That time is come ; and
will end only with the world : and therefore our pa-
tience must not end until the term of our lives ex-
pires. We are always in hopes of seeing impiety
humbled, and innocence victorious : but we deceive
ourselves; for time in its whole extent is the season
of this world, that of Christians is eternity. The
fear of death is sometimes a less dangerous tempta-
tion than that which proceeds from the love of religion.
It is very grievous, to be looked upon and treated
by the ministers thereof as an impious wretch, un-
worthy of all commerce with God, as a rotten mem-
ber, capable of spreading a general corruption in the
society of the saints : this is, to a devout person, a
death more terrible than that of the body. In vain
do those who persecute good men with fire and sword,
flatter themselves with the uprightness of their in-
tentions, and their zeal for religion, if they are either
blinded with their own passion, or hurried on by that
of others, for want of due examination. Men often
think they sacrifice to God a wicked person, when
at the same time they are sacrificing to the devil a
servant of God.

" 3. And these things will they do unto you, be-
cause they have not known the Father, nor me."

526 ST. JOHN.

Ignorance in the true worship of God, and in his
designs concerning his Son, has been the cause of a
great number of crimes and sins; but was itself the
effect and punishment of other sins. If such an
ignorance can excuse from sin, we may justify the
persecutors of the apostles. When men have once
rejected the light, as the Jews had, there are no sins
of which they are not capable. That penal darkness
which sin spreads over the heart, does not only oc-
casion it to run precipitately into crimes, but even
persuades it that it serves God in committing them.
A double injustice and misery this, for men to af-
front God by persecuting his servants, and endea-
vouring to destroy his worship and religion, and at
the same time to expect that he will reward them for
it. My God, how dismal is that state, wherein men
think they follow the divine light, when they have
no other guide but their own darkness ; wherein they
take evil for good, and sin for virtue !

" 4. But these things have I told you, that, when
the time shall come, ye may remember that I told
you of them."

Truths bring forth fruit in their proper season,
though, when they are first taught, they frequently
seem to be cast away. It is a pernicious com-
plaisance towards our friends, to conceal from them
mortifying and afflictive truths, when it is expedient
and profitable for them to know them. Christ does
not afflict his disciples merely for the sake of afflict-
ing them, but to show them how much they stand
in need of him, and to oblige them to watch and pray,
and to distrust both the world and themselves. It
is an invincible proof of the truth of the Christian

CHAPTER XVI. 527

religion, that Christ foretold exactly whatever was
to happen both to himself and to his church; and
that his church, being opposed by all the powers of
the world, should yet triumph over them all by the
sole strength of the word and the Spirit of God.

" — And these things I said not unto you at the
beginning, because I was with you. 5. But now I
go my way to him that sent me; and none of you
asketh me, Whither goest thou ?"

A discreet pastor knows how to give his admoni-
tions and consolations seasonably, and according to
the wants of persons. We ought to fix and settle
the minds of men in a lively belief of the almighty
power of God, and of the grace of Jesus Christ,
before we show them the difficulties, dangers, and
temptations, which they will meet with in the ways
of God : as Christ confirmed his apostles in the be-
lief of his divinity, by the miracles and wonders of
his life, before he clearly discovered to them the
mystery of his death, and the persecutions which
they themselves were to undergo. We have but
little curiosity as to the things of eternity; our hearts
are more taken up with the good or evil things of
this life, than with those which are reserved for the
world to come. We have not Jesus Christ now
visibly present to ask him any question : but he is
present in the Scriptures and in his church to answer
us \ and he renders himself present in prayer, to
speak to those who know how to render themselves
present therein to him by a lively, intent, and re-
verential faith.

" 6. But because I have said these things unto
you, sorrow hath filled your heart."

528 ST. JOHN.

How rare and uncommon a thing is the love of
the cross, and how few are there whose minds are
not dejected at the sight of its approach ! There is
no sensible enjoyment whatever which we fear to lose,
which does not take up our mind and heart more
than all the invisible good things which are the ob-
jects of our hope : so little are we yet settled and
established in faith. Joy and sorrow are the two
passions which generally employ the whole applica-
tion of the mind and activity of the heart: it is
therefore a matter of great importance to choose a
proper object for those passions, and to be no other-
wise affected with it than we ought. That sorrow
which is according to faith, is not an idle, languishing,
and inactive sorrow ; but a sorrow which is intent
on God, and on the things of eternity; a sorrow
which knows how to ask what is proper of God in
prayer, and to beg of him light and information con-
cerning our present state, and grace to make a good
use of that light, that it may be a means to guide
us in following him to that place whither he is gone
before. Christian sorrow may enter into the heart,
and affect it very much ; but it ought never to fill
it, or entirely to take it up. It may dwell, but it
must not command there, nor assume an absolute
dominion. Faith and hope ought still to have the
ascendant over it.

" 7. Nevertheless I tell you the truth : It is ex-
pedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away,
the Comforter will not come unto you ; but if I de-
part, I will send him unto you."

Death, according to the language of Christ's love,
is no other than a kind of journey. It is a passage

CHAPTER XVI. 529

or going from earth to heaven. He hides from his
disciples whatever is grievous and afflictive in the
sacrifice of his death, and shows them only how ne-
cessary and expedient it was for them. Order must
be strictly observed : earth, defiled and profaned by
the sin of Adam, and by so many crimes and sacri-
leges, must be purified by the sacrifice of the cross,
before it can receive the Holy Spirit ; the sin of man
must be expiated by the death of the true victim,
before he can be reconciled to God by his Spirit;
and the heart of man must be washed in the blood
of his Saviour, before it can become the temple of
the Holy Ghost, and contract with God the new
covenant, of which Jesus Christ is the mediator by
his blood, and the bond and surety by his Spirit.
We cannot have, at one and the same time, the com-
forts both of earth and of heaven : we must make
our choice. The engagements of affection even to
the most holy persons are obstacles to holiness, and
to spiritual consolations, which are more pure, solid,
and advantageous. How much more then do carnal
passions and criminal affections render man unworthy
of God !

" 8. And when he is come, he will reprove the
world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:"
Faith discovers to us three different states of man :
1. Under sin, in which there is nothing but infidelity
towards God, because there is no faith in Jesus
Christ. 2. Under grace, in which state sin is over-
come, and righteousness acquired by faith in Jesus
Christ risen from the dead, and by the hope of
invisible treasures. 3. In the peace and glory of
heaven, where Christ will reign with his members,
Vol. III. Z 57

530 ST. JOHN.

the devil with all the reprobate being banished into
hell by the last judgment. Thus faith shows us
three principal and fundamental truths, taught here
by Jesus Christ, and explained by Paul, Rom. iii.
9, 22. i. 17, 18. v. and vii. which comprehend the
whole Christian theology, which is designed not for
one people alone, like that of the law, but for the
whole earth. The first is the general corruption of
nature in Adam, and, in consequence of that, the
reisn of sin until the coming of Jesus Christ. The
second is the reparation of our nature in the new
Adam, and the reign of Christian righteousness by
his grace. The third is the condemnation of sin-
ners, and the total destruction of the kingdom of sin,
and of all the power of the devil, by the last judg-
ment. None but the Holy Ghost can give us a cer-
tain knowledge and an indubitable proof of the wound
of original sin, and of the disorder it has caused in
the world. The mysteries of the establishment of
the true righteousness by Jesus Christ, are still more
impenetrable without faith. And the judgments of
God in the temporal and eternal punishment of sin,
are, to human understanding, a profound and un-
fathomable abyss.

" 9. Of sin, because they believe not on me:"
Nothing is more capable of giving us a true no-
tion of the great corruption of the world by sin, than
the incredulity of the Jews, who were only hardened
by so many benefits, prophecies, and miracles, and
provoked and exasperated even by the meekness of
Christ. Envy, obduracy, and opposition to the
known truth, are, in those who have received a greater
portion of light, a plain and evident token of the

CHAPTER XVI. 531

dominion of concupiscence. And yet we cannot
from thence arrive at this knowledge without the
assistance of the Holy Ghost. The consideration
of the incredulity of so many people ought to con-
vince us, that we as well as they were no other than
children of wrath. The sins of others show us what
we ourselves should be without the grace of Christ.

" 10. Of righteousness, because I go to my Fa-
ther, and ye see me no more:"

It is the fruit of the descent of the Holy Ghost,
that we know both the unprofitableness of the legal
and carnal righteousness, and the necessity of the
righteousness of God, by faith in Jesus Christ raised
from the dead, ascended into heaven, and there hid
from the sight of men, to be the object of their faith
and confidence until his manifestation at the last day.
If the true righteousness consists in setting our af-
fections upon nothing which is visible, ye sons of
men, how long will ye suffer your hearts to be bowed
down toward the earth ? What advantage is it to
you to love vanity, and to seek after lies? " Seek
those things which are above, where* Christ sitteth
on the right hand of his Father." It is from thence
that true righteousness comes. It is there that true
happiness is to be found.

" 11. Of judgment, because the prince of this
world is* judged." [* Fr. Already.]

It is the gospel, preached by the mission of the
Holy Spirit, which discovers to us the wrath of God,
which will one day break forth against the impiety
and unrighteousness of men. It was by publishing
the last judgment, and proclaiming Jesus Christ to
be the Judge of the quick and the dead, that the

z 2

532 ST. JOHN.

apostles began the preaching of the gospel. The
prince of this world is already condemned, and the
sentence of his condemnation is executing every day,
since that of the descent of the Holy Ghost, when
three thousand souls were taken away from him as
from a usurper. Idolatry destroyed, the Gentiles con-
verted, the possessed delivered in the name of Jesus,
the gospel every where received, and the martyrs
sacrificing their lives rather than offer incense to the
devil; all this evidently shows that he stands con-
demned, and is stripped of all. Ye blind men, who
still cleave to the world, and place therein all your
hopes and expectations, what will become of you,
since your prince is already judged and condemned
to eternal punishment ?

" 12. I have yet many things to say unto you,
but ye cannot bear them now."

Christ here practises that which he teach*es, giving
only milk to children, and proportioning his truths
to the apprehension of his auditors. He sows the
seed of the most sublime truths, and of the whole
system of ecclesiastical knowledge, which the Holy
Ghost will one day unfold and particularly explain
to them ; just as we now proceed with respect to
children, whom we teach the mysteries of the Trinity
and of the incarnation only in general. It is the
duty of a good pastor to instruct his people accord-
ing to their capacity. A director of the conscience
must explain and lay open the truths and ways of
God to the souls under his care, in proportion as
God is pleased to open their understanding and their
heart, and as far as it is useful and profitable for
them. He must study this wise and prudent con-

CHAPTER XVI. 533

duct of Christ, and beg of him the grace to imitate
it on proper occasions.

" 13. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is
come, he will guide* you into all truth : for he shall
not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear,
that shall he speak : and he will show you things to
come.', [* Fr. Teach you.]

Since every truth of faith and salvation was de-
livered to the apostles to be consigned to the care of
the church, whatever they have not taught in the
Scripture, is neither a matter of faith, nor necessary
to salvation; and whatever is contrary to that which
they have taught, is false and erroneous. It belongs
to the Holy Spirit to cause those seeds of truth
which Christ sowed in the heart of his apostles, to
spring up and bear fruit, to enlarge and explain them,
and to make them both understood and loved. The
method of teaching the truths of religion which is
peculiar to the Spirit of truth, is to inspire them into
the mind and heart, and to give men both the un-
derstanding and the love of them. The Spirit of
truth is the internal, almighty, and infallible teacher
thereof, only because he proceeds from the eternal
truth and wisdom, and in receiving from thence his
essence, together with it receives all truth ; as the
eternal truth and wisdom receives it from his Father
by his eternal generation. In like manner the
church, when she teaches her children, does not
speak of herself, but speaks only that which she has
heard from the Spirit of truth by the Scripture.
Whoever is particularly called to study, explain, and
defend the truth, ought to depend very much upon
this Spirit: he ought to adore, to invoke, and to

534 ST. JOHN.

draw him down by ardent desires and good works,
that he may by his assistance be able to penetrate
into the truths of Christianity. To expect that he
will satisfy our curiosity concerning future events, is
to tempt and dishonour him : the truths, the mys-
teries, and the hopes of the other world, are the
things which he comes to show us, and they are these
which we must beseech him to cause us both to be-
lieve and love.

" 14. He shall glorify me; for he shall receive of
mine, and shall show it unto you."

As the mission of the Son was for the glory of
the Father, so the mission of the Holy Ghost is
wholly designed to glorify the Son, in establishing
his kingdom which is the church, in making his
name known throughout the world by the preaching
of the gospel, in forming his members by the new
birth and the new life which he gives them in him,
and in manifesting his power and glory by miracles,
by the gift of tongues, by prophecies, and by all the
other effects of the gifts of this Holy Spirit. All
effects whatever of holiness and piety, and all the
works of grace, come from the Holy Ghost, as the
Spirit of Jesus Christ; a Spirit, who, proceeding
from him, does from all eternity receive every thing
from him, and who was in time sent and given only
to him and to his members, for the sake of his
merits alone, and only for the accomplishment of his
designs, and the formation of his body. The divine
persons even honour those from whom they pro-
ceed ; and whatever proceeds from God, either does
actually honour him, or at least ought to do it.
We ought, therefore, to make no use of the gifts of

CHAPTER XVI. 535

our Creator but what tends to his honour, by ulti-
mately referring them all to his glory, and using
them only according to his will and his design in be-
stowing them upon us.

" 15. All things that the Father hath are mine:
therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall
show it unto you."

The Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and
the Son, as from one and the same principle.
Whatever the Father hath is the Son's, and it is
from the Father that the Son receives power to pro-
duce the Holy Ghost, by communicating to him
whatever he himself receives from the Father, namely,
his essence. Every thing which was showed to the
apostles and to the church, came from the Son, and
by him from the Father. Christ repeats what he
said before, on purpose to admonish us the more
earnestly, that we ought not to teach the faithful
any other doctrine but what the apostles learned of
the Holy Ghost, or which is included therein. God
showers down his blessing in a very plentiful manner
upon the words of a good pastor, who preaches no-
thing but what he receives from Jesus Christ, not
solely by the study of his word, but likewise by
prayer and meditation.

Sect. II. — Joy after Sorrow,

"16. A little while, and ye shall not see me : and
again a little while, and ye shall see me; because I
go to the Father."

Joy succeeds sorrow. Christ sometimes hides
himself from those whom he loves most, but not for
any long time. The whole term of this present life

536 ST. JOHN.

is but a little while ; and therefore all the joy or sor-
row thereof can be but little : every thing therein is
of very short continuance. Neither that which is
agreeable and pleasant, nor that which is painful and
afflictive in this world, deserves to be regarded.
Christ having given his apostles the preceding com-
forts and consolations, he now speaks more plainly to
them concerning his departure : but then he adds to
those consolations the hope of the resurrection, which
is the foundation of them all. He is snatched away
from us by death, only in order-to be restored to us
in the fulness of power and glory, and in a condition
to be the object of our joy and of our eternal felicity.

"17. Then said some of his disciples among
themselves, What is this that he saith unto us, A
little while, and ye shall not see me : and again a
little while, and ye shall see me: and, Because I go
to the Father? 18. They said therefore, What is
this that he saith, A little while? we cannot tell
what he saith."

Men will not understand either the necessity of
suffering, or the shortness of this life. The words
of Christ are sometimes obscure, on purpose to oblige
us to apply ourselves more diligently to the study of
them, and to have recourse to him in order to under-
stand them. That which he had so often told them
concerning his death, and very lately concerning the
treacherous design of one of the twelve, ought to have
prepared their minds for these words : but the time
of light and understanding was not yet come. The
obscurity or difficulty of religious matters does not
dishearten or discourage true disciples, but, on the
contrary, excites them to seek after light and under-

CHAPTER XVI. 537

standing, in humbly acknowledging their own igno-
rance : whereas the proud take occasion from that
obscurity, either to ridicule the things of God, or to
neglect the study of them, or to murmur against
God, and blaspheme him on that account. It is the
settled order of providence, that we should depend
one upon another for our instruction in truths which
are obscure, and should all of us together have re-
course to God, when men are not able to explain
them to us.

" 19. Now Jesus knew that they were desirous
to ask him, and said unto them, Do ye inquire
among yourselves of that I said, A little while, and
ye shall not see me: and again a little while, and ye
shall see me?"

Christ goes to meet those who sincerely desire to
know the truth. He prevents their questions, be-
cause the desire of the heart is a prayer which God
hears distinctly; but he grants it only in the manner
and measure which he thinks fit. A good pastor
ought to rejoice, when he sees the faithful take de-
light in discoursing concerning the mysteries and
truths of Christianity, and in humbly desiring to be
informed concerning that which they do not under-
stand. He ought, on his side, to take delight in
entertaining them on such subjects, in preventing
them in their doubts, and in explaining to them
whatever it is useful for them to know.

" 20. Verily, verily, I say unto you, That ye shall
weep and lament, but the world shall rejoice; and
ye shall be sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be
turned into joy."

The world rejoices for a moment while the righ-

z3

538 ST. JOHN.

teous are in tears: but the joy of the latter shall be
eternal, while the former shall be eternally in sorrow.
That which passed at the death and resurrection of
Christ, is a lively representation of what his mem-
bers suffer in this life, and of what they will enjoy in
the glorious life hereafter. The present life is, as
it were, three days, wherein the world triumphs in
oppressing the righteous, and the righteous groan
under the power of the world. Christ himself as-
sures us, that sighs and tears are our lot and portion,
and yet it is our chief care how to avoid them. If
we eagerly desire and seek after the joy of the world,
we show ourselves willing to weep and lament with
it eternally. All tears are not Christian tears :
concupiscence has hers as well as charity. For a
man to weep because he is deprived of the object of
his passion, is to weep like a reprobate, if faith do
not correct this unhappy motive, and cause the heart
to acquiesce and submit. Happy is the penitent
who changes his vain or criminal joys into holy and
salutary tears, through the hopes that God will
change his momentary sorrow into eternal joy.

"21. A woman when she is in travail hath sor-
row, because her hour is come : but as soon as she
is delivered of the child,* she remembereth no more
the anguish, for joy that a man is born into the
world." [* Fr. A son.]

Jesus Christ is this Son, born to a new, glorious,
and immortal life, by means of his resurrection,
which is his third birth. The pangs of travail are
endured on the cross, where the old man suffers to
bring forth the new. Can we ever forget this mys-
tery of our salvation ? The church, as also every

CHAPTER XVI. 539

one of us, was brought forth upon the cross, amidst
the pains, and by the death itself of Jesus Christ.
Let us remember that we were born upon the cross;
and that our regeneration or new birth being at pre-
sent imperfect, the proper time for our joy is not yet
come. As this whole life is, as it were, the travail
of child-birth ; so it will be followed by eternal joy,
when Christ entire shall be perfectly regenerated or
born again in his glory, that only Son consisting of
the Head and the members, of whom the Father will
say to all eternity, " This is my beloved Son," &c.
Let us, by the hope and expectation which the
Christian faith gives us, but take a foretaste of that
joy which is to succeed our pain and sorrow, and
these will appear as nothing. Such is the law of
child-birth ; and there is no dispensation, not even
for Jesus Christ himself.

" 22. And ye now therefore have sorrow; but I
will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and
your joy no man taketh from you."

The apostles partook of the joy of our blessed
Saviour's resurrection, because they had partaken in
the sorrows of his death. The greater share we
have in the latter during this life, the greater shall
we have of the former in heaven. The joy of the
world affects only the senses, or the imagination ;
the joy which penetrates and fills the heart, is the
joy of God. This is the only joy which cannot he
taken from us ; because God is the only good of
which we cannot be dispossessed against our will.
The godly sorrow of repentance and mortification
attracts the eyes of Christ towards our hearts; and
these gracious looks produce therein a solid and sub-

540 ST. JOHN.

stantial joy which tends to salvation. None but God
can raise in the hearts of his servants a real and un-
feigned joy, even amidst the sharpest sorrows and
afflictions of this world. The sinner has no kind of
joy but what may be taken from him against his will,
because it all comes from without : the Christian is
under no apprehension of losing his joy, because the
only object of his love is in his own heart.

Sect. III. — Prayer in the name of Christ. Con-
fidence in him.

" 23. And in that day ye shall ask me nothing.
Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall
ask the Father in my name, he will give it you."

In order to obtain every thing of the Father, we
must pray in the name and through the merits of
Jesus Christ, as the Redeemer, Mediator, and Head
of the church. In this manner the church prays,
and thus all her children ought to pray. The sin-
ner, as a child of Adam, deserves only to be rejected
of God. He has no right to offer up any prayer,
but only as he is a child of God, and a member of
his Son; nor to speak to God, but by his Spirit.
But then he begins to become such, whenever he
earnestly desires it. When a man presents himself
before God in prayer, full of his own perfections and
deserts, he is but little disposed to expect every
thing only through Jesus Christ. No man can pos-
sibly pray too much like a beggar and a criminal,
like one who has nothing, who is unworthy of every
thing, and who has not even a right to pray but by
and in Jesus Christ alone. Prayer is the business
of the heart : he therefore who asks only with his

CHAPTER XVI. 541

lips, without the desire which is of faith, well de-
serves not to be heard.

" 24. Hitherto have ye asked nothing in ray
name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may
be full."

There are abundance of Christians who deserve
the same reproach; few prayers being truly Chris-
tian, and offered in the spirit of faith, with due con-
fidence, and through Jesus Christ. There are some
who are always ready to put their trust and confi-
dence in some saint, recommended to them by men
as a proper object of their devotion, and who neglect
what Christ himself recommends to them, which is
to place their devotion in adoring, praisiug, return-
ing thanks, and praying to God through Jesus
Christ, and in expecting no manner of grace or bless-
ing, but through him alone. Every thing is pro-
mised to the performance of the single duty of prayer :
because prayer, truly so called, includes in it a sin-
cere desire to be the servant of God; this desire
necessarily produces a diligent application to the
means of being so; and this application excludes
whatever is not conformable to the will of God. He
grants to the prayer of those who love him, not that
which may give them a transient and imperfect satis-
faction, but that which is instrumental to them in
attaining to the full and perfect joy of eternity, and
in gaining even here below the joy of faith and hope,
which alone fills the heart, supports it, and gives it
peace.

" 25. These things have I spoken unto you iu
proverbs : but the time cometh, when I shall no more
speak unto you in proverbs, but I shall show you
plainly of the Father.',

542 ST. JOHN.

The time of the gospel is the time of light, of
truth, and of mercy; because every thing is re-
vealed, though it be not yet placed in the broad and
open day. The Jews were in the light in compari-
son of the Gentiles, but they were in darkness if
compared with Christians : and the faith of Chris-
tians is but darkness in comparison of that light
which the blessed enjoy. The truths which our
blessed Lord taught his apostles during his life, were
for the most part obscure to them, because their
heart was not then illuminated with the light of the
Holy Ghost. Christ could have given them this
light before : but it was expedient for them not to
receive it till after his death and resurrection, that
they might know it was the fruit and effect of those
mysteries. Whenever we open the sacred book, we
may assuredly expect to find nothing therein but
parables, as they may be called, unless God vouchsafe
to open our understanding with a ray of his light.
When, O my God, will that happy time come,
when nothing shall be obscure to us; when we shall
behold every thing in the clearest and brightest light ?

" 26. At that day ye shall ask in my name: and
I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for
you:"

It was not clearly and fully known, that Jesus
Christ was the Mediator betwixt God and man, and
that every thing was to be asked and granted in his
name, till after he had shed his blood, opened hea-
ven, and sent down the Holy Spirit upon his church,
and till so many gifts of that Spirit, and so many mira-
cles wrought by the apostles, had appeared in the
world. It seems as if the time of praying to God in

CHAPTER XVI. 543

the name of Jesus Christ were not yet come in re-
spect of a very great number of Christians; so little
are they disposed to receive and to act according to
this truth. From the time that we are assured that
Christ is our Mediator, we must not in the least
doubt but that he prays for us, since this is the very
function of a Mediator. I am very sensible, O
Lord, that thou prayest for me, since I find in my-
self the powerful effects of so many graces and mer-
cies, which none but thou couldst obtain for me.

" 27. For the Father himself loveth you, because
ye have loved me, and have believed that I came out
from God."

God's loving us with the love of a Father, is a cer-
tain sign that we are ingrafted into the body of
Christ by faith and charity ; for he loves none after
that manner but only in his Son. And Christ's
dwelling in our hearts by faith and love is a certain
sign that God loves us; since his love is the first of
all his gifts, the source of our faith and our love, and
even of the gift of his beloved Son, which he gave us
by the incarnation. We may justly think, that our
being in Jesus Christ, by a lively and active faith, is
a state of continual prayer, or a state which attracts
the love and favour of God, unless the sallies of con-
cupiscence are an obstacle thereto; as the state of
Jesus Christ, both God and man, is an eternal
prayer, which continually solicits the love and mercy
of God in behalf of sinners.

" 28. I came forth from the Father, and am come
into the world : again, I leave the world, and go to
the Father."

The eternal generation of the Son in the Father,

54.4 ST. JOHN.

his humble incarnation in his mother, and his glo-
rious life in his resurrection and ascension, are three
divine births worthy of our frequent adoration, as
comprehending all the greatness and dignity of Jesus
Christ. Let our faith pierce the veil of these plain
and common words, which contain under them the
two greatest mysteries of Christ, the incarnation and
the resurrection — his humiliation and his exaltation.
Let us adore these mysteries; let us imitate the hu-
miliation of Christ, and we shall then partake of his
exaltation. This incomprehensible self-denial of the
Son of God, whereby he stripped himself as it were
of all the greatness, riches and glory of his eternal
birth, to stoop so low as to our meanness, poverty,
and misery, is but very badly imitated by us, if our
hearts be set upon the greatness, riches, and glory of
this world. Christ, by his resurrection and ascen-
sion, teaches us to separate ourselves from this pre-
sent world, and to disengage our affections from
earthly things. Every thing in him preaches this
doctrine, but it is a doctrine which we cannot resolve
to put in practice.

M 29. % His disciples said unto him, Lo, now
speakest thou plainly, and speakest no proverb. "

When God himself vouchsafes to resolve our
doubts, and to disperse our darkness, we are as it
were transported into a region of light. This vicis-
situde of darkness and of light is useful and advan-
tageous to us : the former humbles us, and the latter
gives us comfort. The one teaches us not to attri-
bute the light to ourselves; the other, not to be de-
jected under darkness : and both cause us to adhere
to Christ, and to depend upon him. His grace is

CHAPTER XVI. 545

necessary in order to our endeavouring to get out of
darkness, and to keep us from leaving and forsaking
the light.

" 30. Now are we sure that thou knowest all
things, and needest not that any man should ask
thee : by this we believe that thou earnest forth from
God."

A person whose conscience is perplexed with fears
and apprehensions, and who cannot discover to men
the temptations to which his faith is exposed, and
the inquietudes which disturb his heart, is never more
sensibly convinced that God is the God of his heart,
than when he comes himself of his own free grace to
dart his light into it, and thereby to show him plainly
that he continues in God's favour, that his faith is
pure, and that his heart is devoted to his service.
Show, Lord, I beseech thee, that thou art my God.
Prevent the wants of a heart which knows not even
how to lay them open before thee; which does not
so much as think of doing it; and which frequently
shuts out from itself that light and consolation of
which it stands most in need. It was in order to
come into my heart that thou earnest forth from God
thy Father.

" 31. Jesus answered them, Do ye now believe?
32. Behold, the hour cometh, yea, is now come, that
ye shall be scattered, every man to his own, and shall
leave me alone: and yet I am not alone, because the
Father is with me."

A man sometimes thinks himself proof against
every thing, who is very near his fall. The divine
favours and consolations make us sometimes forget-
ful of our own weakness. It is a double instance of

546 ST. JOHN.

God's mercy to any person, when with one hand he
fills his soul with the sweetness and comfort of his
love, and with the other infuses into him a salutary
dread of the unfaithfulness of his own heart. This
reproof was a seasonable admonition for the disciples;
but they did not thereby apprehend that they were
shortly to leave and forsake him in his tribulations,
who was so careful to prevent their afflictions by his
divine consolations. How ungrateful are we ! always
ready to receive benefits at the hands of God, and
always ready to desert him for the sake of every trifle.
It is the comfort of holy persons, when forsaken by
men, to consider that God is with them in their tri-
bulation, though they be not always sensible thereof.

" 33. These things I have spoken unto you, that
in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall
have tribulation:* but be of good cheer; I have
overcome the world." \_*Fr. Afflictions : but have
confidence.]

The ground of our confidence in Jesus Christ is,
that he has overcome the world and all its tempta-
tions, for himself and for his members. Let us
seriously meditate upon this admirable conclusion of
his last sermon. The peace which he leaves to his
servants does not consist in having nothing to suffer
from the world, but in despising every thing it can
make us suffer, through a full trust and confidence in
him. He declares that in the world we shall have
tribulation : but all the tribulations or afflictions of
the world are as it were blunted, and have lost their
strength and power, by the victory which Christ has
gained over it. It is one of the last and dying cares
of Christ to make us sensible of the necessity of our

CHAPTER XVII. 517

having afflictions in this world ; and yet the whole
care of a great many is to have none at all. They
choose rather to have peace with the world, than to
have peace with and in Jesus Christ ; because they
love the good things of this world, and are afraid of
temporal evils. We must expect the worst which
can happen to us from the hands of men, and hope
for the best from the grace of Christ : this is the
only way to possess our soul in peace. It is the
peace of Christ which overcomes sin in us, and the
malice of men for us, by the same power whereby he
overcame the devil and the world. No, my Saviour,
I desire no peace but that which is the fruit of thy
victory; I am resolved to have none but what is al-
together consistent with thine.

CHAPTER XVII.

Sect. I. — Christ Prays for his Glorification.

" I. These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his
eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come;
glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee :"

Our blessed Saviour teaches us to join prayer to
our words of comfort and exhortation; which reach
no farther than the ear, if God vouchsafe not to
accompany them with the unction of his grace and his
Spirit. It is the order observed by the church in
her liturgy, that the reading and expounding of the
words of Christ and his apostles should precede the
prayer of consecration. Christ's lifting up of his
eyes represents to us that lifting up of the heart,
which makes one of the principal parts of prayer.
The first condition of the Christian sacrifice is obe-

548 ST. JOHN.

dience; for the first sacrifice is that of the will. The
obedience of our adorable victim is exact, even to the
very hour of his sacrifice : for that it belongs not to
the victim to choose the hour of its immolation, but
to wait for it. It belongs only to him who is the ab-
solute disposer of life to prescribe the term and limits
of it. It is the glory of every creature to be sacri-
ficed to its Creator: but the life of Christ, sacrificed
to his Father, is the meritorious cause of our glorifi-
cation both of his natural and mystical body, and the
great means which God himself chose in order to
establish his kingdom and his glory. A priest, or
a bishop, ought not to consider his own honour, or
the dignity of his ministry, any otherwise than in
conjunction with the glory of God, and this in imi-
tation of Jesus Christ, who looks upon his Father as
the beginning and end of all his own glory. Happy
are those members of his, who, after his example,
desire no other glory but that which comes from
God, and desire it only for his sake. The first in-
tention and end of the sacrifice of Christ is the glory
of his Father.

" 2. As thou hast given him power over all flesh,
that he should give eternal life to as many as thou
hast given him."

The second intention and end of the sacrifice of
Christ is the salvation and glory of the elect. The
lot and portion of all mankind is in the hands of
Jesus Christ. All nations are his inheritance. He
will save and glorify them all in those whom his
Father has given him, and drawn to him, by the
preaching of the gospel. Christ's zeal for the ac-
complishing of his Father's designs, and his love

CHAPTER XVII. 549

towards us, cause him to refer his death and resur-
rection to the salvation and glory of his members.
What a shame is it to see Christians so cold and
indifferent in the business of eternal life, when the
Son of God sacrificed himself to purchase it for them !
They are so far from entering into the way which
leads to it, that they are even ashamed to speak con-
cerning it : as if they were designed for somewhat
else, and as if it was for others that Christ died and
rose again !

" 3. And this is life eternal, that they might know
thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou
hast sent."

If life eternal consist in the knowledge and love of
God and of his Son Jesus Christ, then none are
happy in this world, but those who make it their
business to know and to love God. All other know-
ledge is but vanity and vexation of Spirit, when it is
not ultimately referred to that knowledge in which
our whole felicity ought to be placed. Who would
not pity those fine wits who know every thing except
the gospel; whose memories are stored with all the
actions of antiquity, except those of Jesus Christ;
who make a thousand discoveries in arts and sciences,
and neglect the art of sanctifying themselves, and the
science of salvation ! To know God without Jesus
Christ, is to know life eternal without knowing the
way which leads to it, the guide who conducts us
thither, and the source of that knowledge and love
which put us into possession thereof. Grant, O my
God, through Jesus Christ thy Son, that I may nei-
ther love, nor ardently desire any thing but this
knowledge, and that I may know thee only iu order
to love thee.

550 ST. JOHN.

" 4. I have glorified thee on earth : I have fin-
ished the work which thou gavest me to do."

To glorify God is to finish the work which he has
given us to do, and not to undertake any other merely
of our own head, how great and considerahle soever
it may possibly be. We have no other business on
earth but to glorify God : and in order to this, every
one has his particular work appointed him. Woe
to that person who seeks his own glory in the work
of God ! How great is the difference betwixt Jesus
Christ and the generality of Christians ! His work
is finished together with his life; ours is scarce be-
gun when we are forced to leave this world. Christ,
who was sent to preach the gospel to the poor, has
discharged his mission and fulfilled his ministry, and
is now going to seal them with his blood. My God,
how much reason is there to fear, that very few
preachers can at the time of death have a confidence
bearing any proportion to this ! Such a confidence
at the last hour is the portion of a good pastor, who
has spent himself in the labours of his office, and
more especially of him who dies a sacrifice for the
truth which he has preached or defended.

" 5. And now, O Father, glorify thou me with *
thine own self with the glory which I had with * thee
before the world was." [* Fr. In.]

Blind is that person who seeks any other glory be-
sides that which God is pleased to give to us in him-
self, as well as to our adorable Head : to our Head,
by diffusing upon his human nature, and even upon
his body, the brightness of that glory which the Word
always had in God; to us, by causing us to receive
of his fulness. In Christ, this is the perfection of

CHAPTER XVII. 551

the incarnation; in us, it is the consummation of
Christian sanctification ; and the one as well as the
other is the execution of God's eternal decrees, and of
the free predestination of the head and of the members
in God, wherein the present and the future time are
both equally present. God glorifies those in heaven
and in himself, who glorify him on earth and in them-
selves. In Christ, as well as in his members, God
crowns nothing with his glory but the gifts of his
grace : but through his grace and goodness, these
very gifts become in his sight the merit which de-
serves eternal glory.

Sect. II. — Christ prays for his Apostles.

" 6.% I have manifested thy name unto the men
which thou gavest me out of the world : thine they
were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept
thy word."

Christ would have no ministers associated to his
priesthood but those who are chosen, sanctified, and
given him by his Father. Men cannot appoint
themselves to that office, nor dispose of their own
persons, since they belong to God who made them,
who by his eternal election more particularly appro-
priated them to himself, who delivered them from the
slavery of the world, and gave them to his Son.
What is man, that he should be made the gift of
God to his own Son ? What is a soul, that Christ
should glory in having received it of his Father, and
should vouchsafe to claim it as his proper right ?
But then, what is that soul which disdains to belong
to Christ, and which chooses rather to be the slave
of sin, and to return to the bondage of the world?

552 ST. JOHN.

We are Christ's, not only by the single title of his
Father's donation ; we are his likewise by the title
of his labours and his preaching, whereby he has
manifested his Father's name unto us; by the title
of his grace, which has kept us from ruining ourselves
in transgressing his law;- by the title of faith, the
gift of which he has bestowed upon us; and by that
of charity, which he has shed abroad in our hearts, to
enable us to keep the word of God. How unjust,
how ungrateful, must that person be, who refuses to
belong to Jesus Christ !

" 7. Now they have known that all things, what-
soever thou hast given me, are of thee:"

The Christian faith causes us to know God as the
fountain of all good, even of that which is in Jesus
Christ himself, of his divinity, his mission, his word,
his miracles, and his virtues. This acknowledgment
and confession which Christ makes so often, that he
has nothing but what he has received, is a very great
and important lesson for Christians. The pride and
presumption of the sons of Adam put them continu-
ally upon seeking after some good in themselves which
is not a gift of God, that they may make it a foun-
dation of merit in respect of all the gifts which God
has bestowed upon them. Our blessed Saviour does
not act after this manner.

" 8. For I have given unto them the words which
thou gavest me; and they have received them, and
have known surely that I came out from thee, and
they have believed that thou didst send me."

The knowledge of the incarnation and mission of
Christ is a very great gift of his to us ; and the word
by which we know them, is a gift of God to Jesus

CHAPTER XVII. 553

Christ, and of Jesus Christ to men, which requires
abundance of gratitude and acknowledgment. An
evangelical labourer ought to set a value upon his
vocation and mission, not so as vainly to pride himself
in it in the sight of men, but to humble himself in the
sight of God on the account of his own unworthi-
ness. To the end that the Word may be received,
a twofold gift is necessary; the one external, by
preaching; the other internal, by the operation of
grace : there being in the heart no docility with re-
spect to the divine word, if God do not produce it
therein by his Spirit.

" 9. I pray for them : I pray not for the world,
but for them which thou hast given me ; for they are
thine."

Christ prays particularly for his apostles: and he
teaches us to pray often and with great earnestness
for the pastors, and for all those who labour in the
church. It is his love towards her which causes
him to pray for them; and because they are conse-
crated to God for her benefit and advantage. Our
love towards God our Father, and towards the church
our mother, is extremely weak, when our spiritual
governors are not remembered in our prayers. The
world, that body of wicked persons, which does and
always will subsist, though some oi' its members be
taken from it, lies under a continual curse, and is
treated as one excommunicated, who has no share in
the sacrifice of Christ any more than in his prayer.
What opinion then ought we to entertain of the
world for the future ?

" 10. And all mine are thine, and thine are

Vol. III. 2 A 57

554 ST. JOHN.

mine;* and lam glorified in them." [* Fr. What-
ever is mine is thine, and whatever is thine is mine.]
The interests of God and of Jesus Christ are the
same ; but Christ regards them more as they relate to
his Father, than as they relate to himself: and he has
so great a concern for his apostles, more because they
are God's, than because they are his own ; more be-
cause they are to be the instruments of his Father's
glory, than because he himself will be glorified in
them. Kindle, Lord, I beseech thee, this pure zeal
in the hearts of thy ministers. Let thy glory be the
end of all their labours, as the glory of thy Father
was the only thing which thou soughtest upon earth.
Happy is that pastor, who, through a perfect freedom
from all self-interest, and a real disengagement from
every thing, can with Jesus Christ truly say to God,
" Whatever is mine is thine;" and who can, from a
sincere and ardent love, add, " Whatever is thine is
mine !" Miserable is that minister of Jesus Christ
in whom Christ is not glorified !

" 11. And now I am no more in the world, but
these are in the world, and 1 come to thee. Holy
Father, keep through thine own name those whom
thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we
are."

The invisible protection of God is never wanting
to his servants, when he deprives them of his visible
protection. It would be something very dreadful
to faith, for a man to see himself in the midst of the
world without Jesus Christ, did not faith itself assure
us, that he is with us in temptations and afflictions.
Christ asks of his Father that which he himself will
do together with him, to manifebt his eternal origin

CHAPTER XVII. 555

from him as God, his dependence upon him as he is
man, and the necessity of praying to God to support
us in our conflict with the world, and, when that is
over, of ultimately referring to him the glory of the
victory. — Let us imitate Jesus Christ, who addresses
himself to the different perfections of God, according
to the different occasions which have relation to them.
Let us adore and invoke the holiness of God, ao-ainst
the corruption of the age; the almighty power of his
name, against the power of the world and of hell ;
his unity, against that multiplicity of objects which
divide and distract our minds here below : and so of
the rest. Holy Father, keep us, we beseech thee,
by thy holiness and thy divine unity ; and conduct us
at last to that perfect and consummate unity, which
has for its original and pattern that of the Trinity
itself.

" 12. While I was with them in the world, I kept
them in thy name : those that thou gavest me I have
kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdi-
tion ; that the Scripture might be fulfilled."

A pastor ought, after the example of Christ, to
be in the world to no other end, but only to seek and
to keep the elect of God. It is matter of great com-
fort to such a pastor to be able to say, that he has
kept those who have been intrusted, but not abso-
lutely given, to him. On the contrary, it is a great
misfortune to a flock when it has a pastor who pre-
tends to keep it in his own name, as belonging to
himself, for his own glory, and by his own virtue and
power. The loss or perdition of the wicked always
afflicts a man of God: but he adores his judgments
and unsearchable counsels, and humbles himself under

2 a 2

556 ST. JOHN.

his almighty hand. The word of God is fulfilled in
his judgments, since it is so frequently declared there-
in, that he will destroy those who break his law, and
that he will exercise his justice against slanderous
and perfidious persons.

" j3. And now come I to thee; and these things
I speak in the world, that they might have my joy ful-
filled * in themselves." [* Fr. The fulness of my

Christ comforts his servants, not in giving them
the joy of the world, hut in making them partakers
of his own. It is a very great consolation under the
apprehension of afflictions and persecutions, to hear a
holy pastor pouring out his soul in prayer, with all
the tenderness of a Father towards us, and with all the
confidence of a son towards God. The joy of hope
passes easily from a father's heart into that of his
children. The joy of the world is an empty thing,
s^nd empties the heart, only that it may fill it with
vanity ; but the joy of Christ is full of the divine
unction, which fills, supports, and comforts the heart.
It has its fulness even in this life; what then will it
be in the other, when perfect love shall give our heart
its full dimensions, that we may receive the plenitude
of the divine gifts, and " be filled with all the fulness
of God !"

" 14. I have given them thy word ; and the world
hath hated them, because they are not of the worlds
even as I am not of the world."

Fidelity in following and preaching the word of
God in its purity is inconsistent with the friendship
of the world. There is no danger of being hated
by the world, when, through fear of displeasing it, we

CHAPTER XVII. 557

abstain either from following the way of truth, or from
teaching it ; for from the time that we act thus, we
ourselves are of the world. The gift which God
gives of his word, in the manner wherein he gave it
to the apostles, is inconvenient and grievous to those
who love the comforts and conveniencies of this life :
but how advantageous is it to those who know how
mucji better it is to be hated by the world with Jesus
Christ, than to be loved by it !

45 15. I pray not that thou shouldest take them
out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them
from the evil."

Those who love the church, and are called to the
service of it, must continue in the world, notwith-
standing its contrariety and opposition to Christ, out
of submission to his will, in order either to promote
the salvation of the world, or to be crucified in it.
There is reason to hope, that God will keep those
from the evil and corruption of the world, who re-
main in the midst of it by his order and appointment,
or on the account of the duties of their state and vo-
cation. But we run a great risk of perishing, when
we are under no engagement or obligation from God
to continue therein. There are abundance of per-
sons who ought earnestly to beseech God to take
them, as it were, out of the world, that they may
perform the great work of repentance, and that they
may, in the retirement of some proper place, be
secure from the corruption of the world: there are
others, whose duty it is to beg of him the grace to
remain in the midst of it, without being corrupted
thereby. This last must be the subject of those
prayers which the faithful are to offer up in behalf of
their pastors.

558 ST. JOHN.

" 16. They are not of the world, even as I am
not of the world."

Let the repetition of this truth make the clergy
sensible, how different their life ought to be from
that of worldly persons, and how much they ought
to abhor the maxims of the world. To resemble
Christ in this respect is a very great proof of a call
to the ministry. What is the design and meaning of
this " as," but only to inform us, that we must hate
the world, resist and oppose its lusts, and be ready
to be crucified by it as Jesus Christ was?

" 17. Sanctify them through thy truth : thy word
is truth."

The sanctity or holiness which Christ asks for
those whom his Father has given him, is a Christian
holiness, spiritual, internal, and conformable to the
spirit of his religion; instead of the Jewish sanctity,
which was only carnal, external, &c. The truth
and the immutability of the word of God, are
the seal of all his designs concerning them and his
whole church, and the rule of true and substantial
piety. The clergy, whose lives are to be a pattern
to others, ought to take greater care than others to
form their piety by the word of God and the spirit
of the church. It is not enough, not to be of the
world, to keep at a distance from its vices, and not
t) follow its maxims; we must be the servants of
God by a true holiness and by all Christian virtues.
The renouncing whatever remains in us of the cor-
ruption of the world, is the beginning of true holi-
ness; which consists in faith, hope, and charity,
whereby we are united to God.

" 18. As thou hast sent me into the world, even
so have I also sent them into the world."

CHAPTER XVII. 559

None ought to be more opposite to the world, or
to be more truly and substantially holy, than he who
is sent into the world to labour towards the sanctifi-
cation of souls. Why are so few ecclesiastical per-
sons strictly holy? It is because they are generally
sent into the world before they have ceased to be of
the world, and before they have taken any pains
about their own sanctification. It is not at all
strange, that those who are already corrupt, should,
by their conversation with the world, proceed to the
highest degree of corruption ; since even the most
holy persons are sometimes corrupted thereby, and
lose their own souls. The mission of Christ is the
source and the pattern of all mission in the church.
How can those, who take upon them the ministerial
office without being called and sent, look upou Jesus
Christ as their pattern, and as the original of their
ministry?

" ]9. And for their sakes I sanctify myself, that
they also might be sanctified through the truth."

How can Christ possibly fail of obtaining the
sanctity for which he prays, since he asks it in con-
sideration of his own sacrifice, which is the great and
solemn prayer of our Mediator, and the infinite price
of our sanctification ? We can be truly sanctified
only by charity; and this charity could be pur-
chased for us by nothing but the sacrifice of the
cross. For a man to sanctify and to sacrifice himself
are one and the same thing. Both consist in de-
stroying the old man, either by death, or by mortifi-
cation, for the sake and the honour of God, and in
order to be united and consecrated to him alone.
The sacrifice of martyrdom is the most excellent way

560 ST. JOHN.

of sanctification, for that it manifests the greatest
disengagement from the old man, and the greatest
contempt both of life and of pain ; the one the most
dear, and the other the most dreadful thing to human
nature; and because this contempt proceeds from the
strongest and sincerest desire of being united and
consecrated to God. O Jesus, sanctify me in truth.
O good Shepherd, grant to thy church a great num-
ber of pastors, who may be able every one of them
to say, I sanctify myself for thy sheep, that they also
may be truly sanctified.

Sect. III. — Christ prays for the salvation of all
the Elect.

" 20. % Neither pray I for these alone, but for them
also which shall believe on me through their word ;''"

The success of the preaching of the gospel, and
the faith of those who hear it, are the effect of the
prayer of Christ, and of his sacrifice, which is the
most holy and efficacious of all prayers. There is
no manner of grace, no degree of faith whatever,
which is not the fruit of the prayer and of the sacri-
fice of Jesus Christ. There are no Christians in
any age whatever, who do not owe their faith to the
word of the apostles, who are apostles even in respect
of those who are at this day converted to the faith :
because it is their very word which has been con-
veyed down to us by the hands of their successors.
If it were not the same word, it could not be the
same church ; since it is upon the word that the
church is founded. A bishop, a priest, and indeed
every ecclesiastical minister, ought to imitate the ex-
ample of Christ in offering up frequent and fervent

CHAPTER XVII. 561

prayers in behalf of the church, and in offering him-
self in sacrifice for her sake.

" 21. That they all may be one ; as thou, Father,
art in me, and 1 in thee, that they also may be one
in us : that the world may believe that thou hast
sent me."

The unity of faith tends to the unity of charity:
and both together terminate in the wonderful and
eternal unity of the mystical body of Jesus Christ in
heaven. We shall there all be one, not in or by
ourselves, but in God, and in the very unity of the
ever blessed Trinity. Who can possibly compre-
hend the dignity of the church and of her children,
and how the unity of the Father and of the Son in
the Holy Ghost, is the source, the pattern, the cause,
and the end of the unity of Christ's members in the
spirit of sanctification ? " One in us;" namely, in
the Father, who, by adopting and regenerating us as
his children, makes us partakers of the divine nature,
to honour and imitate that inexpressible communica-
tion which he makes of his essence to his own Son
in his eternal generation: in the Son, of whom we
are all members, composing together with him but
one and the same body, of which he is the sole
Head, which he rules and governs, and to which he
communicates his life, that he may honour both the
communication which he, together with the Father,
makes to the Holy Ghost of the life received from
the Father himself, and likewise the communication
which he, by the Holy Ghost, makes of his own life
to man, to whom he united himself in unity of per-
son by the incarnation, which communication is in
honour and imitation of that unity: in the Holy

2 a 3

562 ST. JOHN.

Ghost, who is, as it were, the soul and life of this
body, the bond which unites all the members to one
another and to their Head, and the love with which
they love one another; and this in order to honour
what he is with respect to the Father and the Son,
namely, their bond of union, the foundation of their
complacency, and their eternal and consubstantial
love.

" 22. And the glory which thou gavest me I have
given them ; that they may be one, even as we are
one:"

Christians receive by baptism the glorious quality
of being the children of God, which belonged to
none but the only Son of God. He was the only
Son in all respects, but he was pleased not to con-
tinue so, having associated us to his person by the
divine adoption, in order to unite us to himself by
the strictest and most tender union. He gives us
likewise his glory, in giving us for our spiritual food
and sustenance his glorious flesh, which changes our
corrupt nature, and, as it were, mixes us with his,
and renders us one flesh, one blood, and one and the
same spirit with him. Christ no doubt intended by
this repetition to raise in our minds a serious and
attentive consideration of this divine unitv to which
we are called. Though we be not able to compre-
hend it, it is not at all the less credible, and it is the
more valuable on this account. Let us render our-
selves as worthy of it as we can, by carefully main-
taining peace and union with our brethren, and en-
deavouring to the utmost of our power to preserve
the unity of the church. Nothing does more plainly
show that the church is the work of God incarnate,

CHAPTER XVII. 563

than that spirit of unity and charity which reigns
therein, even among the most distant members: ver.
21. The spirit of schism, and whatever bears any
resemblance thereto, ought to be abhorred by all true
Christians.

" 23. I in them, and thou in me, that they may
be made perfect in one ; and that the world may
know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them,
as thou hast loved me."

All religion, and all the designs of God, tend to
unity. Christ becomes the bond and centre thereof
by his incarnation. All the fulness of the Godhead
dwells in him substantially, really, and perfectly, by
the person of the Word; he dwells in Christians
spiritually by faith; and all men, in some manner,
dwell in him bodily by the flesh which he took
of them.' It is through Jesus Christ, that thos«
who are incorporated with him receive the perfection
and consummation of that unity which they have with
God and with one another. The love which God
bears towards us as his children, in adopting us in
and by Jesus Christ, is the source of Christian unity ;
as his eternal love of Christ is the cause of his pre-
destinating him to that adorable unity which makes
him both God and man. The consummation of
unity is the perfection of charity : and those incom-
prehensible methods which God has chosen to estab-
lish a perfect charity among men, are a proof of the
incarnation, and the effect of his exceeding love to-
wards us. The more our unity with Christ resem-
bles his unity with his Father; the more does the
love of the Father towards us resemble that love
which he has for his only begotten Son. Grant, O

564 ST. JOHN.

my God, that all our thoughts and actions may have
a constant tendency to promote unity and charity
with our brethren : and re-unite us all in thyself, O
thou adorable unity and charity.

" 24. Father, I will that they also whom thou
hast given me be with me where I am ; that they
may behold my glory, which thou hast given me :
for thou lovedst me before the foundation of the
world."

How full of consolation, both to the afflicted
apostles and to all Christians, is this confidence,
with which Christ, as Mediator, and in virtue of the
blood he is going to pour out, desires, that his faith-
ful servants may be where he himself is, to be made
happy by the sight and participation of the glory of
his divine and human nature ! This is a conse-
quence of the unity concerning which he has just
now spoken. Christ entire, consisting of the Head
and the members, and composing but one body, and, as
it were, one only Son of God, cannot be any where but
in the bosom of the Father; neither can he possibly
be there, without being glorified, and, as it were,
overflowed with the glory of God. Christ ulti-
mately refers, both the glory which he has received
by his incarnation, and that which he is to receive by
his resurrection, to the love with which his Father
loved him before the foundation of the world, as to
its source and original. It is in him that we are
predestinated to the same glory : and we can never
arrive at it, but only by the same way of humility
and mortification.

" 25. O righteous Father, the world hath not
known thee ; but I have known thee, and these have
known that thou hast sent me."

CHAPTER XVII. 565

Faith, by which we know the mission of Jesus
Christ, and by him his Father, is the foundation of
all the other gifts of God. The world, abandoned
to its darkness and ignorance, remains therein, only
because it loves its own darkness more than the light
of God. To think of this should make us tremble,
and cause us to humble ourselves under the almighty
hand of God ; since we ourselves were once of the
world, and may be so again, if God vouchsafe not to
support us with the same grace by which he sepa-
rated us from it. Let us with Jesus Christ adore
the justice and righteousness of God, in rewarding
the good, and in punishing the wicked.

" 26. And I have declared unto them thy name,
and will declare it ;* that the love wherewith thou
hast loved me may be in them, and I in them."
[* Fr. Made known thy name unto them, and will
still make it known.]

Let us not be puffed up with the knowledge
which we have of God. It proceeds not from our-
selves, but from the goodness of God, and the grace
of Jesus Christ. The word of Christ makes God
known; the Holy Ghost perfects this knowledge,
and renders it useful to us by charity or love; and
love establishes Christ in us, and us in him, in order
to our consummation with him in God to all eter-
nity. Christ, in ascending into heaven, did not
abandon his church. His Spirit and grace make
known his Father's name in all succeeding ages.
Whatever conceptions of the greatness and majesty
of God we may here frame from faith and from the
holy Scriptures, that knowledge which is reserved
for us in heaven is of a quite different nature.

566 ST. JOHN.

Grant, O my God, that I may have no other
knowledge of thy name and thy perfections, but what
may serve to confirm thy love towards me, to increase
mine towards thee, and still more and more to form
Christ in my heart, till thou vouchsafe to glorify me
in him, and him in me.

CHAPTER XVIII.

Sect. I. — The garden. The Jews fall to the
ground. Christ taken and led to Annas,

" 1. When Jesus had spoken these words, he
went forth with his disciples over the brook Cedron,
where was a garden, into the which he entered, and
his disciples. "

Every circumstance of our blessed Lord's passion
which the Holy Ghost has delivered to us, must
needs contain something which is instructive and
useful. This brook, over which David passed at
the time of his humiliation and flight from his un-
natural son Absalom, puts us in mind that the in-
gratitude of that person was but a type or shadow of
that of the Jews in after ages, and of all sinners.
Into this garden of tears and sorrows does Christ
now go, to expiate with his blood the sin of Adam,
committed in a garden of delights. Far is he from
desiring to avoid death, since he goes freely and
voluntarily to cast himself into the hands of his ene-
mies, and in retirement and prayer to wait for their
coming.

" 2. And Judas also, which betrayed him, knew
the place; for Jesus oft-times resorted thither with
his disciples."

CHAPTER XVIII. 567

The remembrance of the prayers, in which our
blessed Lord had so often passed whole nights in
this place, and of which this traitor had been himself
a witness, is not capable of softening his heart.
When the sinner is fully possessed with his passion,
all external means which God uses to prevail with
him have no effect upon his mind.

" 3. Judas then, having received a band of men
and officers from the chief priests and Pharisees,
cometh thither with lanterns, and torches, and wea-
pons."

Let us fear and tremble, when we see Judas
desert from the Son of God, to go into the service
of the devil; leave the company of Christ's disciples,
to put himself at the head of his enemies; and re-
nounce the office of an apostle, to perform that of a
traitor. He chooses to make himself a slave to these
corrupt priests and great pretenders to zeal for the
law, and to be the minister of their passions, rather
than to be the minister of the charity and the priest-
hood of Jesus Christ. The being a slave to one
single passion, as Judas was to his avarice, is enough
to render a man a slave to the passions of all other
men. Could this wretch have possibly imagined,
that these weapons and soldiers could prevail against
Christ, had not his covetousness entirely blotted out
of his mind the remembrance of what his Master
had done before his eyes, to render all the former
attempts of the Jews against him fruitless and in-
effectual ?

" 4. Jesus therefore, knowing all things that should

'DO

come upon him, went forth, and said unto them,
Whom seek ye ?"

568 ST. JOHN.

The Holy Ghost has been very careful to prevent
the scandal or offence which the weak might take at
the sufferings of our blessed Saviour, by informing
us expressly that he suffered nothing but what he
clearly foresaw, and what he chose to suffer. Men
are bold in dangers on no other account, but only
because they do not foresee the consequences: Christ
exposes himself to that very danger which he fore-
sees, and can avoid. This question, " Whom seek
ye ?" was a very great admonition to these persons,
had but their minds been open to receive it; since it
plainly showed the power of that person, who blinded
them so far as to hinder them from knowing him
whom they sought: but it is one effect of this sort
of blindness, not to be sensible of the blindness
itself.

" 5. They answered him, Jesus of Nazareth.
Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also,
which betrayed him, stood with them,"

He who came to seek sinners on purpose to give
them life, is here sought by sinners in order to be
put to death. In this every sinner may behold a
lively representation of his own ingratitude and per-
fldiousness. The token of the kiss having been
rendered insignificant, the Jews are not now able to
distinguish and to know Christ. Thus God, when-
ever he pleases, renders all the precautions of men
vain and ineffectual, and breaks all their measures
and designs.

" 6. As soon then as he had said unto them, I
am he, they went backward,* and fell to the ground."
[* Fr. Were thrown down.]

They all fall to the ground, and yet not one of

CHAPTER XVIII. 569

them perceives and owns the hand of God, or the
omnipotent voice of Christ. Thus God often ruins
the fortune, the designs, the health, &c. of the
wicked ; but none are converted by making a good
use of this judgment, but only those whose hearts
he vouchsafes to touch with the powerful influence
of his love. Judas, an apostle, an eye witness of
Christ's miracles, nourished so long with his word,
and pre- obliged by so many favours, is thrown down,
but not converted : Saul, a persecutor of the apostles
and of the church, who had never known Christ,
who still breathed out threatenings and slaughter
against his disciples, is no sooner thrown down, but
he yields, and becomes meek and gentle as a lamb.
The reason is, because the latter is inwardly pierced
with such light and grace as it is in vain to resist, and
the former is abandoned and given up to his own
reprobate mind. O my God, how profound and un-
searchable are thy judgments ! I adore them, and
submit myself to them.

" 7. Then asked he them again, Whom seek ye?
And they said, Jesus of Nazareth."

God allows the sinner time to recover himself,
and gives him opportunity to make useful reflections
upon his fall. But something else besides time and
opportunity is necessary, otherwise his heart will only
grow more obdurate. These miserable wretches seek
that which they ought ; they seek the Saviour of the
world, but it is in order to destroy him — and by this
they destroy their own souls. It is but too true,
that we often seek with greater industry and perse-
verance occasions of ruining ourselves, than we do
those of attaining to salvation. Of how much use

570 ST. JOHN.

and advantage would it be, for every one of us fre-
quently to put this question to himself, " Whom
seekest thou ?" Jesus Christ, or the world ? If
the former, is it in order to adore him, or to crucify
him by thy sins ?

" 8. Jesus answered, I have told you that I am
he. If therefore ye seek me, let these go their way :"

Christ, forgetting the care of his own life, is soli-
citous only how to save the lives of his apostles.
The very same word in the mouth of Christ has very
different effects : at one time it is like a thunderbolt,
which strikes down all it meets; at another, it is like
a gentle breath of air, which passes by without doing
the least harm. Thy power, O Jesus, is triumphant
whenever thou pleasest : and thou art now just going
to subject it to thy enemies, because it is thy will
and pleasure so to do. Christ gives a plain and evi-
dent proof of his absolute power, by giving law to
this band of soldiers, and obliging them to do what
he thinks fit.

" 9. That the saying might be fulfilled which he
snake, Of them which thou gavest me have I lost
none."

This saying, which has two proper and literal
meanings, the one relating to temporal, the other to
eternal life, plainly shows the copiousness of the word
of God. Whoever is in the hand of Christ, is in
perfect safety. Happy the person who continues
therein : but how can we do this, if Christ himself
vouchsafe not to take hold of us, to guide us, and
to unite us to himself! Lord, I hope I am of the
number of those sheep which thou wilt never lose !
Let thy eyes, thy Spirit, and thy heart, be always

CHAPTER XVIII. 571

watchful over ray conduct and my salvation. For
without thee there is nothing to be expected but
dangers, perils, and inevitable destruction.

" 10. Then Simon Peter, having a sword, drew
it, and smote the high priest's servant, and cut off
his riaht ear. The servant's name was Malchus."

This action of Peter is a representation of the
vain endeavours of the pride of man without grace.
Nature is very earnest, zealous, and presumptuous :
but all earnestness or zeal which does not proceed
from the Spirit of God, is of no long duration.
Christ guides Peter's hand, and permits him not to
do any other harm to this servant, but only what
was requisite to give himself an opportunity of doing
good to his enemies, of instructing his disciples, and
of edifying all persons. The right ear is an emblem
of docility, obedience, and a true understanding of
the Scriptures, which will not be found any more,
either in the priests or the people of the Jews, until
Christ shall one day restore them to them by his
grace.

" 11. Then said Jesus unto Peter, Put up thy
sword into the sheath : the cup which my Father
hath given me, shall I not drink it ?"

Christ here teaches the clergy to abstain from all
violent proceedings. He sometimes heals the wounds
which the precipitate conduct of the chief pastors
has made without his orders. He restores to its for-
mer state what they cut off through a rash and in-
considerate zeal; and commands them to put up the
sword which they use unseasonably. God must be
obeyed, whatever the event may be. He who loves
him cannot endure to be deprived of any opportuni-

572 ST. JOHN.

ties of suffering for him. To dispose a man to look
upon these as a gift and present from the hand of
God, it is necessary for him to be a true disciple of
Christ, who first made sufferings honourable, and
discovered the value of them. Let us take great
care, that we be not of the number of those sinners
who decline the cup of repentance and mortification,
and who are overjoyed to meet with such spiritual
guides as dispense with them, and by their conduct
hinder them from looking upon this cup, as a great
favour, and a precious gift of the divine mercy.
What knowledge, what authority soever in the
church, those may have who divert us from perform-
ing repentance in the strictest manner, or without
reason dispense with our performance of it, let us
rather believe Christ, who enjoins us to do it, and
teaches us to love and practise it in a spirit of obe-
dience. Happy is that penitent, who says to one of
these imitators of Peter, the cup which God out of
his fatherly love has given me, shall I not drink it,
to avoid that sentence which he will one day pronounce
with the utmost severity of an inexorable judge ?

ts 12. % Then the band, and the captain, and
officers of the Jews, took Jesus, and bound him."

O adorable captivity, O sacred bonds of our blessed
Saviour! By these, 1. He expiates the ill use of
our liberty. 2. He obtains for us the grace to use
it well. 3. He sets us free from sin, and makes us
become the servants of righteousness, in which con-
sists the glorious liberty of the children of God.
4. He sanctifies the imprisonment and confinement
of his disciples, and even of criminals. — How hon-
ourable to the ministers of Christ are bonds, which

CHAPTER XVIII. 573

he endured before them, if they endure them for his
cause and in his spirit ! How delightful is a prison,
when a man considers that he is the prisoner of Jesus
Christ, that his present condition has been sanctified
by him, and that he is chosen of God to honour him
particularly in that state ; to be consecrated to him
in it, and to reap the spiritual advantage peculiar
thereto ! Grant, Lord, I beseech thee, that thy
bonds may be endured with this spirit, both by the
innocent and by the guilty.

" 13. And led him away to Annas first: (for he
was father-in-law to Caiaphas, which was the high
priest that same year.)"

This appearance of Christ before a person who
had no authority is one part of his humiliations.
He submits to this, that he may multiply the num-
ber of them, and add to the shame which he bears
in the stead of sinners, and In order to their salvation.
The iniquity of Christ's enemies triumphs in this;
but his humility triumphs abundantly more. There
are in the world many of these fatal alliances, which
engage men to have a hand in many acts of injustice,
and sometimes even in the most heinous crimes.
Of bow great importance is it, to contract an alliance
only with virtuous persons ! An alliance is often
attended with very great consequences; and is some-
times the occasion of salvation or damnation.

" 14. Now Caiaphas was he which gave counsel
to the Jews, that it was expedient that one man
should die for the people."

It is matter of great joy to the wicked to see their
advice followed ; but this joy, which is an effect of
the wrath of God, will last but a short time, and will

574 ST. JOHN.

be punished with an endless sorrow. It is a judg-
ment still more terrible upon them, when God per-
mits their designs of oppressing innocence and justice
to succeed according to their desire. But this
judgment is most of all terrible, when priests are the
objects of it. If there be any bad advice or counsel
to be given against the interests of Christ, of his
church, his truth, or his servants, it is frequently one
of his ministers who gives it. So dangerous is it for
a man not to be holy in a holy dignity or office.

Sect. II. — Peter follows Christ to the high priest1 s
palace, Christ, examined concerning his doc-
trine, receives a box on the ear, Peter's denial.

" 15. % And Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so
did another disciple. That disciple was known unto
the high priest, and went in with Jesus into the
palace of the high priest."

In vain does any man pretend to follow Jesus,
when he has no other guide but presumption, and
no other strength besides that of nature. The com-
mand Christ gave to the soldiers, that they should
let his disciples go their way, was an admonition to
these to retire. But Peter has a mind to distinguish
himself by doing more than others, and will thereby
plunge himself into a misfortune which he would
have avoided, had he followed the rest. He would
not believe his master, when he told him that he
could not follow him then : and he will find the truth
of it by a sad experience. Ecclesiastical persons are
not to follow Christ into the house of the great.
He goes thither only by compulsion, and in order
to be humbled. Whoever goes to such places merely

CHAPTER XVIIT. 575

upon human motives, and contrary to God's appoint-
ment, will meet with nothing there but occasions of
falling as Peter did.

" 16. But Peter stood at the door without.
Then went out that other disciple, which was known
unto the high priest, and spake unto her that kept
the door, and brought in Peter."

Men sometimes imagine they do a considerable
piece of service to their friends who are clergymen,
by introducing them to the great; and thereby they
undesignedly expose them to sin and to eternal dam-
nation. It is of much greater advantage, to find a
true friend who persuades us to go back, than those
false friends who incite us to proceed, and who pro-
cure us admittance. Peter, while he stood at the
door, had perhaps some inclination to retire, and to
avoid the danger: but a convenient opportunity
drives away abundance of good thoughts, and renders
holy inspirations fruitless and insignificant. The
devil is but too careful in opening to us a wav to
those places where he can hold us captive to his own
advantage.

" 17. Then saith the damsel that kept the door
unto Peter, Art not thou also one of this man's dis-
ciples? He saith, I am not."

That man thinks himself as firm and immoveable
as a pillar, who is weaker than a reed. Whoever
does not own himself a disciple of Christ, denies him.
We imagine ourselves faithful, because we do not
speak the. very same words Peter did. But what is
our refusing to follow the maxims of the gospel, but
a plain denial of Christ, and a disowning ourselves
to be his disciples? What would not Peter have

576 ST. JOHN.

said in the presence of Caiaphas, and before his
judgment-seat, since even at the door of his house,
and only before a servant-maid, his courage fails him,
and he gives ground so easily ? This first fall even
at the threshold, ought to have been of use to him,
to humble him, to open his eyes, and to prevent his
falling again : but he was entangled in the snare.

" 18. And the servants and officers stood there,
who had made a fire of coals; (for it was cold;) and
they warmed themselves : and Peter stood with them,
and warmed himself."

We ought, especially if we are weak, to avoid all
bad conversation : to expose ourselves thereto is a
presumption which often costs us dear. Curiosity
and idleness frequently cause us to seek and to meet
with companions as inquisitive and idle as ourselves,
and this combination of idleness and useless curiosity
seldom fails of producing abundance of faults, and
of giving occasion to a great many sins. The devil
generally presides at assemblies of this nature, and
furnishes matter of discourse out of his own stock.
He makes one in all conversations which have no
manner of relation to God, and sometimes even in
those wherein men seem to propose to themselves no
other end but what is good.

*' 19. 51 The high priest then asked Jesus of his
disciples, and of his doctrine."

In this examination, Jesus Christ, the sovereign
priest and the eternal truth, is humbled in respect of
both these qualities, being obliged to give an account
of his doctrine and his disciples, as one suspected to
have conspired with the latter against the govern-
ment, and to have designed to destroy the law of

CHAPTER XVIII. 577

Moses by the former. Conspiracy and innovation,
imputed at random and without proof, are generally
the two crimes of which the innocent are supposed to
be guilty. Christ was graciously pleased to be ac-
cused of all manner of crimes, that he might be the
consolation and strength of all those who are un-
justly accused by the world. Let us particularly
reverence in him every thing which was humbled for
our sakes.

" 20. Jesus answered him, I spake openly to the
world ; I ever taught in the synagogue, and in the
temple, whither the Jews always resort; and in se-
cret have I said nothing."

Those who broach strange doctrines seek dark-
ness: whereas truth seeks the light; and those who
preach it are not afraid to publish it in the open day.
It is a very great proof of innocence, when the per-
son accused has the confidence to appeal to the tes-
timony even of his enemies, and they can take no
manner of advantage from it. Christ gave particular
instructions to his disciples for the conduct of their
lives, and for the direction of the church ; but he
gave them no secret maxims, no private doctrines
which he designed should be concealed.

" 21. Why askest thou me? ask them which
heard me, what I have said unto them : behold, they
know what I said."

We cannot possibly learn more perfectly than
from Jesus Christ, how to join modesty and resolu-
tion together in asserting and maintaining t\S truth
to the very last. It is peculiar to him who has a
good conscience to possess his soul in patience, under
the most unjust and heinous accusations, without
Vol. III. 2 B 57

578 ST. JOHN.

breaking out into any reproachful and injurious lan-
guage. An evangelical preacher ought to preach
the gospel in such a manner, that he need not fear
to appeal indifferently to all those who have heard him.

" 22. And when he had thus spoken, one of the
officers which stood by struck Jesus with the palm
of his hand, saying, Answerest thou the high priest
so?"

There are always flatterers to be found who make
their court to the great at the expense of justice and
innocence. It is a reproach to a judge, to have such
officers as violate even in his presence the most com-
mon and general laws, by which the greatest crimi-
nals are protected from the insults of private persons.
A wicked judge, who finds himself stopped in his
proceedings by the plainest proofs of injiocence, is
glad to be relieved by any incident, whatever the
innocent person may suffer thereby. There is not
a more grievous and unpardonable affront, in the
opinion of the world, than a box on the ear: and it
was for this very reason that Christ chose to suffer
it, that he might confound and humble the pride of
man, and leave the proud an example of patience,
which, if not imitated, will certainly condemn them.
With what shame and confusion ought we to be
covered, how ought our hearts to be affected, when
we read so surprising a circumstance as this, of which
we ourselves are the occasion by our sins ?

" 23. Jesus answered him, If I have spoken evil,
bear •itness of the evil; but if well, why smitest
thou me?"

It is more difficult on such occasions as this to
speak with truth, mildness, and justicej as Jesus did,

CHAPTER XVIII. 579

than it is to turn the other cheek. Tliey do no
other than give Jesus Christ a new blow, who abuse
and persecute his ministers for having preached his
doctrine, and rebuked vice with a freedom becoming
evangelical labourers. These, after the example of
Christ, must not abate any thing of their sacerdotal
freedom and boldness on the account of their suffer-
ings, but must vindicate themselves, as he did, by
convincing reasons. It is for the interest of supe-
riors that we should not be silent, but that we should
justify ourselves when we are accused of being want-
ing in respect towards them. To act otherwise
would be to give encouragement by our own example
to those who are glad of all opportunities to dishon-
our them.

"24. (Now Annas had sent him bound unto
Caiaphas the high priest.)"

It is thus, O Jesus, our new Adam, that thy
hands, bound and tied fast with cords, expiate the
daring presumption of our first parents in reaching
out their hands to the forbidden fruit. It is thus
likewise, that thou condescendest to do penance for
so many ill uses, in which sinners employ their
hands, making them the instruments of so many
crimes, sacrileges, and impurities. The sight of the
bonds with which our blessed Saviour was bound,
weakens the faith of his apostle still more, who sees
that his Master makes no use of his power to break
them; and therefore gives him over for lost. But
faith ought not to look upon them in this view. It
is not so much to the power of men that Christ
yields, as to the power of his love towards us. No-
thing ought to give me more confidence than these

2b 2

580 ST. JOHN.

voluntary bonds which he endures, on purpose to
break those which my will has made for itself of its
own iniquities and vicious habits.

" 25. And Simon Peter stood and warmed him-
self: they said therefore unto him, Art not thou
also one of his disciples? He denied it, and said, I
am not."

It is not good to receive any thing of the world,
or to grow familiar with it : for familiarity leads to
compliance and too great a regard to men, and these
lead to sin. The fall of one of the chief of the
apostles shows us plainly, that salvation cannot be
built upon any thing which is in man, whom a bare
word or two shakes and immediately throws to the
ground. The weakness of the first preacher of the
faith, when left to himself, makes it evidently ap-
pear that it was a Spirit very different from that of
man which spoke by the mouth of the martyrs, and
a strength far superior to theirs which enabled them
to withstand tyrants, and to surmount the fears of
death. It was not it seems enough, that Christ
should inform us by his word, concerning the ne-
cessity of his grace, in order to overcome the least
temptation, in such a manner as might be profitable
to our salvation : it was requisite we should read this
truth written in the largest characters in the fall of
one of the most favoured apostles, and in the weak-
ness of one of the chief pillars of the church. When
a man has once experienced his own weakness on
any particular occasion, he must quit that occasion
if he have any regard to the salvation of his soul.

" 26. One of the servants of the high priest
(being his kinsman whose ear Peter cut off) saith,
Did not I see thee in the garden with him ?M

CHAPTER XVIII. 581

When grace supports us, the more the danger
increases, our strength and courage exert themselves
the more. But when man is left to himself, his
weakness appears the more visible; and his fall be-
comes so much the more fatal, the greater the dan-
ger is. There was some little reason to fear this
servant-maid ; there was more to be afraid of the
men: but one of the high priest's servants, in the
high priest's own house, a kinsman of him whom
Peter had wounded, who was an eye-witness of the
action, who saw him with Christ, and who mentions
the very place and circumstances, makes this poor
apostle dread the worst which could happen, who
had by his own imprudence involved himself in this
danger. Let us learn, from the example of his mis-
fortune, to fear danger, and to flee from it.

"27. Peter then denied again; and immediately
the cock crew."

It is a very great misfortune for a man not to be
convinced of his own weakness, without grievous
falls. Those of Peter answer exactly to his pre-
sumption; his three denials to his three presumptu-
ous promises : but three humble protestations of love
for Jesus will make amends for both. It is high
time for the cock to crow, and for thee, O Lord,
to begin to open the eyes and ears of this sinner,
who is already blinded by his falls, and begins to
grow hard and obdurate. The sins of Peter afford
matter of consolation to such sinners as have had
frequent relapses, since he received mercy after three
acts of infidelity. But that which may administer
hope to penitents, does by no means justify the pre-
sumptuous security of sinners.

582 ST. JOHN.

Sect. III. — Christ brought before Pilate. His
kingdom is not of this world. He was born to
bear witness to the truth. Bar abbas.

" 28. % Then led they Jesus from Caiaphas unto
the hall of judgment : and it was early; and they
themselves went not into the judgment-hall, lest
they should be defiled; but that they might eat the
passover."

Let us consider Christ's appearance before an
idolatrous judge. What unaccountable blindness is
this in the Jews, to fear being defiled by entering
into the house of a heathen, and not to fear being so
by soliciting him against the innocent, and by their
own wickedness ! We sometimes find the like su-
perstition in the great pretenders to devotion. This
is p. new indignity to Christ, to be delivered up to
the Gentiles, which had been foretold by the pro-
phets, and by Christ himself: but it is at the same
time a new right which he acquires over them to sub-
ject them to his dominion: and, perhaps, for this
reason it is expressly mentioned in the creed, that
Christ suffered under Pontius Pilate. The Gen-
tiles have no more cause to boast than the Jews,
since both are guilty of the death of Christ. There
is no man in the world who has not crucified Jesus
Christ, since there is not one who has not offended
God and transgressed his law, either by himself, or
in Adam.

" 29. Pilate then went out unto them, and said,
What accusation bring you against this man ?
30. They answered and said unto him, If he were
not a malefactor, we would not have delivered him
up unto thee."

CHAPTER XVIII. 583

There cannot possibly be a higher act of injustice,
than to desire that a judge should suppose the ac-
cused person guilty of the crime, without any farther
examination ; and this is what Jesus Christ suffered.
All the forms of justice are tedious and troublesome
to those who are afraid lest an innocent person
should escape their malice and revenge. To be de-
livered up and brought to the bar is enough to make
a man guilty, when envy and passion are his ac-
cusers. It is no strange and extraordinary thing
to see innocent persons oppressed by arbitrary pro-
ceedings, without any legal process: but for a man
to be brought before a judge in order to be delivered
up directly to execution, without any proof of his
.crime, or any examination concerning it, is a new
way of oppression first invented and contrived against
the Saviour of the world. In thee, O Jesus, we
find matter of comfort and consolation under every
hardship and affliction.

"31. Then said Pilate unto them, Take ye him,
and judge him according to your law. The Jews
therefore said unto him, It is not lawful* for us to
put any man to death : 32. That the saying of
Jesus might be fulfilled, which he spake, signifying
what death he should die." [# Fr. Permitted.]

All things conspire against Jesus Christ ; and
even the prudence of the Roman emperors, who had
taken from the Jews the power of life and death, is
the occasion of his being condemned to the cross.
The Jews were not permitted indeed to put criminals
to death, but they were permitted, and even obliged
in conscience, to acquit the innocent, and to examine
the justice or injustice of the accusers. Can men

584 ST. JOHN.

ever complain of the injustice which is done them,
and of the rash judgments which are cast upon them,
if they pretend to follow the footsteps of their Mas-
ter, and to imitate his patience?

" 33. Then Pilate entered into the judgment-hall
again, and called Jesus, and said unto him, Art
thou the King of the Jews ?"

Jesus is humbled in his character of King, and
delivered up by his own people, and by the priests,
that he may be a pattern of patience and humility to
persons in all states and conditions. That which
earthly kings will least of all endure, and which in-
deed they have reason least of all to endure, is, that
any one should question whether they be kings.
Christ, in suffering this, shows plainly that his hu-
mility is as extraordinary as his royalty. He is the
King both of the Jews and the Gentiles; but the one
kingdom which these two people are to compose, is
far above the reach of Pilate's apprehension. These
carnal Jews are unworthy of thee, O my King and
my Saviour ! make us, we beseech thee, true Israel-
ites according to the Spirit, and vouchsafe to bring
us by thy grace into subjection to thyself. They
are hearts which thou seekest, in order to establish
thy kingdom in them ; and thou knowest where to
find them.

" 34. Jesus answered him, Sayest thou this thing
of thyself, or did others tell it thee of me?"

Christ teaches us to behave ourselves modestly
and respectfully towards magistrates and earthly
powers, even when they do not discharge their duty.
This judge has the interest of his sovereign at heart,
because his own fortune depends upon it; but he is

CHAPTER XVIII. 585

perfectly indifferent and unconcerned about the in-
terest of this just and innocent person, against whom
fie admits of the highest accusations without proof
or witness; and this because he neither hopes nor
fears any thing from him. Judges ought to ex-
amine every thing, and, above all, their own heart.

" 35. Pilate answered, Am I a Jew ? Thine
own nation, and the chief priests, have delivered
thee unto me: what hast thou done?"

Observe here the surprising wisdom of our blessed
Saviour, who, by the question he asks his judge,
draws from his mouth an answer which justifies his
innocence: for this judge plainly slights and drops
the accusation relating to the state, grounded upon
the dubious acceptation of the name of king, of
which the Jews maliciously made use to destroy him.
This is not therefore now any cause in which the
state is concerned ; it is only a question of religion.
It was the proper business of the Jews, and not of
the person accused, to declare what he had done, and
likewise to prove it. This is an instance of prevari-
cation in the judge, not to take full cognizance of
the crime, before he proceeds to examine the party
accused.

" 36. Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this
world. If my kingdom were of this world, then
would my servants fight, that I should not be de-
livered to the Jews : but now is my kingdom not
from hence."

The kingdom of Jesus Christ is not of this world :
and shall a Christian then seek after honour, riches,
and power here below ? We are called indeed to
reign, but it is in heaven, and not upon the earth.

2b 3

586 ST. JOHN.

As the kingdom of Christ, being not of this world,
does not intrench upon the kingdoms of earthly
princes: so these are not of the spiritual world,
which is the church. We must not be of this
world, if we desire to belong to the kingdom of
Christ; and he receives us into the number of his
subjects by baptism, only on condition that we re-
nounce the world, and all its pomps and vanities.

" 37. Pilate therefore said unto him, Art thou a
king then ? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that I am
a king. To this end was I born, and for this cause
came I into the world, that I should bear witness
unto the truth. Every one that is of the truth
heareth my voice. "

It is the property of Jesus Christ, the eternal
truth, and it is the duty of his disciples, to bear
witness unto the truth at the hazard of life. The
kingdom of God is the kingdom of truth : Christ
came on purpose to preach and to settle it by .faith;
and this faith is a gift of God, which those only pre-
serve to the end, who belong to this kingdom by the
eternal and unchangeable choice of God. Every
Christian, in his proper way, is obliged to bear wit-
ness to the truth on all occasions which present
themselves. Pastors, as the deputies and vicege-
rents of Christ, ought after his example to look upon
themselves as persons born and continuing in the
world, to no other end and purpose, but to bear wit-
ness to the truth, all imaginable ways, and at the
expense of all things. The more violently it is at-
tacked, either in itself by the errors of heretics, or in
its ministers by the calumnies of worldly men, the
more is any one obliged to speak in its defence.

CHAPTER XVIII. 587

There is no surer sign of our being in the way of
salvation, than our having for the word of God that
love, docility, application, and obedience which are
xlue to it.

"38. Pilate saith unto him, What is truth?
And when he had said this, he went out again unto
the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in him no
fault at all."

How many are there in the world, who, after
Pilate's example, either will not learn the truth, or
jdespise it, or pretend not to know it, that they may
not be obliged to expose themselves to danger in the
defence of it ! The innocence of Christ is at one
and the same time acknowledged and abandoned by
his judge. He speaks to the truth itself, he asks it
questions, and then turns his back upon it. That
will not allow us to interrogate it in a cold, indiffer-
ent, and careless manner, or with a double heart: we
must do it with respect, love, sincerity, and perse-
verance. Would to God, the great would earnestly
seek to know it, and would patiently attend while it
is discovered to them ! But they are more afraid to
know it than to be ignorant of it.

" 39. But ye have a custom, that I should re-
lease unto you one at the passover: will ye therefore
that I release unto you the King of the Jews?"

Christ meets with more humanity from a heathen,
than among the Jews : so strangely does the abuse
of the divine favours and benefits corrupt and harden
the heart. These commendable endeavours in be-
half of innocence, serve only to increase the humilia-
tion of Christ, and the condemnation of him who
uses them. When a man has power and authority

588 ST. JOHN.

in his hands, he does by no means discharge his duty
if he only perform good offices, if he only entreat and
solicit persons in favour of the innocent who lie un-
der calumny or persecution : he ought to resist ini-
quity to its face without any regard to men, and to
declare himself boldly and vigorously for the cause
of justice. It is thy mercy, O my God, towards
thy enemies, which is the cause that thy Son finds
no mercy or compassion at all in the hearts of men.
We could never have been released or delivered, if
our blessed Saviour had. It is not he, it is man-
kind which is the criminal to be released at the pass-
over, at that passover whereof he himself is the vic-
tim. It is his glory and our salvation that he dies
innocent, instead of being released and set at liberty
as a criminal and malefactor.

" 40. Then cried they all again, saying, Not this
man, but Barabbas. Now Barabbas was a robber."

We compare and prefer Barabbas to Jesus Christ,
whenever we choose to follow our own passions rather
than the gospel; the spirit of the world rather than
that of God; and the inclinations of the first Adam,
a sinner, rather than those of the second, who is
holiness itself. We abhor that which the Jews did
but once ; and we do the same every day without
remorse or concern, and even without considering
what it is we are doing. The Jews renounced
Christ : but it was before they had received his Spi-
rit, or were made members of his body. The ingra-
titude of a Christian, who has known and tasted his
heavenly gifts, has nothing which comes near it.
Let us cast our eyes upon the life of the generality
of mankind, and see whether there are any great num-

CHAPTER XIX. 589

ber, whose actions do not continually cry out, * We
will not have Jesus Christ ! we will have none of his
humility, his poverty, his mortification, his cross !'
&c.

CHAPTER XIX.

Sect. 1.— Christ Scourged, and Crowned with
Thorns. Behold the Man. Crucify him.

" 1. Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and
scourged him."

Let us not wonder to see Jesus Christ undergo
the punishment of rebellious slaves, since he stands
in the place of sinners, and expiates the disobedience
and rebellion of Adam. It is a very wrong piece of
policy to design to prevail upon the world by grant-
ing it one part of its demands, and, by refusing it the
other, to think we discharge our own duty. There
is no dividing our fidelity betwixt God and the
world; and our infidelity is arrived at its utmost
height, when once we have begun to sacrifice inno-
cence to calumny. Sensuality reigns in all parts of
the sinner's body; and it is in order to expiate and
remove it that Christ submits to this scourging,
which tears his adorable body, and makes it all but
one wound. Shall we not then be ashamed of our
love of ease, and of that tenderness with which we
indulge our rebellious flesh, seeing his holy and in-
nocent flesh is treated in so barbarous a manner for
our sakes?

" 2. And the soldiers platted a crown of thorns,
and put it on his head, and they put on him a purple

robe,"

590 ST. JOHN.

Christ is crowned with thorns, and arrayed like a
king out of mockery, to expiate the crime of Adam
in affecting an independency even in respect of God :
for there is no person whatever who does not inherit
from Adam the love of pre-eminence, and the spirit
of dominion. We see the proper remedy for them
in our adorable Head, crowned with thorns, humbled,
mocked, and insulted in the quality of King. He
refused once to accept of the regal dignity from men,
because it was not attended with any humiliation, and
because the crown they offered him was without
thorns : he now accepts it, because it is very proper
for him who came on purpose to reign by the cross.
A Christian, who is placed in the high station of
honour and authority, has great reason to fear and
tremble, if he find therein nothing of the thorns
or humiliation of Christ to serve as a counterbal-
ance. Grandeur and authority are so infected with
the poison of human pride, that there is an ab-
solute necessity of an antidote and preservative
against it.

" 3. And said, Hail, King of the Jews ! and they
smote him with their hands."

Christ suffers in his sacred countenance that which
those persons deserve, who take so much pains in
adorning their faces that they may draw others into
sin. This is the mystery which Christian princes
ought more particularly to consider. In this they
ought to study the art of ruling in a Christian man-
ner, and how to sanctify in themselves grandeur and
regal power. The court of Jesus Christ, crowned
with thorns, is not a court of flatterers, but of mock-
ers; by suffering whose abuses and insults he expi-

CHAPTER XIX. 591

ates that love of praise and flattery, from which it is
extremely difficult for princes to secure themselves
in the midst of a court, where all strive to outvie
each other in offering them this poisonous incense.
Though it be not indeed consistent either with their
dignity or with the public good, that they should
bear with insolences and affronts, yet their piety and
salvation at least require that they should not bear
with flatteries. This is the least homage which
they owe to the royal dignity of Christ, treated in so
base and ignominious a manner.

" 4. f Pilate therefore went forth again, and
saith unto them, Behold, I bring him forth to you,
that ye may know that I find no fault in him."

See here another part of Christ's humiliations, his
appearance before his own people. A strange way
this of clearing the innocence of an accused person,
to punish him in order to acquit him ! But stranger
yet is the hard-beartedness of this people, whom the
cruelty of this judge does not soften ! Lord, since
thy Father, who is justice itself, suffers thee to be
treated in this manner, thou must of necessity have
crimes of which Pilate knows nothing at all : and
these crimes are mine, and those of all mankind.
Grant, Lord, that I may have the fidelity and grati-
tude at least to adore thee, and to endure with thee
the shame and confusion which thou endurest for my
sake.

" 5. Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown
of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith
unto them, Behold the man !"

Behold here the state and condition to which the
sinner has reduced his King ! changing, by his crimes,

592 ST. JOHN.

the lustre of his regal dignity into a spectacle of pain
and ignominy. These thorns, with which the King
of the Christians is crowned, are more precious than
the gold and diamonds which sparkle in the crowns
of earthly kings, since they are the ransom of the
world, and the price of eternal salvation. Other
crowns are only a vain show, which is often nothing
but the effect and the occasion of sin. The pride
which fills the head of a person who is puffed up with
his dignity, reputation, or learning, especially when
he appears in public, is the disease which Christ de-
signs to heal by means of these thorns which pierce
his sacred head. Let these thorns, O Jesus, sanc-
tified by touching thy adorable flesh, and endued
with a divine and efficacious virtue by being stained
in thy blood, pierce the tumour of my pride and
vanity, and let out the imposthume of the passions of
my heart. This purple robe, which is instrumental
to the humiliation of Christ, expiates the profuseness
and ostentation of the children of Adam in their ap-
parel, and merits and procures for us the grace to
despise that magnificence and excessive niceness
therein which the rich affect. " Behold the man,"
who is the victim of God for men, and the true offer-
ing of men still offered up representatively to God.
How sensibly does it touch sinners, and how insup-
portable is it to them, to be named or pointed out
publicly by any thing in them which exposes them
to disgrace and contempt ! This, O Jesus, is the
very thing which thou intendest to expiate, and to
cure in me by these words.

" 6. When the chief priests therefore and officers
saw him, they cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify

CHAPTER XIX. 593

him. Pilate saith unto them, Take ye him, and
crucify him: for I find no fault in him."

What strange acclamations are these, from a people
upon whom this King has heaped so many favours !
Can we, after this, refuse to suffer the ingratitude
and infidelity of those to whom we have done the
greatest service? This is a kind of homage and an
honour which we owe to Jesus Christ, who for our
sakes suffered both those heinous provocations at the
hands of the Jews. Our sins cry out even louder
than the Jews, and they were those which prevailed
against the innocence of our blessed Saviour. No-
thing is more shameful than the base cowardice of a
judge, who is not willing to commit a crime himself,
and yet suffers it to be committed. Light or know-
ledge renders a judge the more criminal, who delibe-
rately yields to the passion and power of men, and
abandons innocence.

" 7. The Jews answered him, We have a law, and
by our law he ought to die, because he made himself
the Son of God.''

Who can bear with the hypocrisy of the sinner,
who makes even his crimes a matter of conscience
and religion ? But who can satisfy himself that he
is entirely free from this temptation ? Calumny al-
ways suppresses whatever may be of advantage to
those whom it designs to ruin, and conceals all the
proofs of their innocence. Christ " made himself
the Son of God" indeed; but then he likewise
plainly proved himself to be so, by doing the works
of the Son of God, and restoring life to the dead.
There is another law, namely, the law of the divine
justice and mercy, which requires that the Son of

594- ST. JOHN.

God should die to satisfy the justice of his Father,
and to merit and effect the salvation of men. It was
thy eternal love towards us, O Saviour of the world,
which made this law ; and nothing but thy own tran-
scendent charity constrained thee to do it ! •

Sect. II. — Pilate's Fear. Christ's Silence. All
Power co? tes from above.

" 8. f When Pilate therefore heard that saying,
he was the more afraid ;"

How miserable is the condition, and how vain are
the endeavours, of that person who would fain please
both God and the world ! A small degree of love
for justice causes a man to struggle for some time ;
but it is too weak to prevail. To persevere and con-
tinue true to it, he must love it with all his heart :
but he certainly loves it less than his own fortune,
when he sacrifices it thereto. When a man knows
his duty, and has not yet sold himself to iniquity, he
cannot do a wicked action without some remorse :
but these remorses are only so many witnesses against
the sinner.

" 9. And went again into the judgment-hall, and
saith unto Jesus, Whence art thou ? But Jesus
gave him no answer."

How many complaints, murmurings, and justifica-
tions of ourselves, proceeding from self-love, ought
this silence to stifle and suppress ! It is a virtue
which was never heard of before Christ came, and
which has been very rarely practised ever since, for a
man to have it in his power to justify himself, and yet
to continue silent. Christ confounds the eagerness
and impatience of the children of Adam to justify

CHAPTER XIX. 595

themselves from the least suspicions and the slight-
est accusations, by suffering himself in silence such
as are of the highest and most heinous nature. But
had he justified himself and avoided death, we could
never have been justified or delivered from that which
is eternal. Thou hast loved us, O Lord, more than
thy own life; and we, ungrateful as we are, prefer
not only our life, but even our criminal will and in-
clinations, and every trifling interest, before thy glory
and thy holy will.

" 10. Then saith Pilate unto him, Speakest thou
not unto me ? knowest thou not that I have power
to crucify thee, and have power to release thee?"

Christ has another Judge, who is invisible, whose
judgments he adores in silence, under whose omni-
potent hand he humbles himself, and whom he looks
upon as the sovereign disposer of every thing which
men do against him. A good judge cannot boast
of his power; he can do nothing but what he can do
justly. He has no other power but only to make
the laWs take place, by yielding obedience to them
first himself. The judge before us has no cause to
glory in his authority, but rather to humble himself
for the corruption of his own heart, since he punishes
without having any obligation to do it from law or
justice. He is not the master, but the minister of
the law : and therefore ought to make it subservient
to the public good, and not to his own private in-
terest. A good judge ought never to make himself
feared by his power and authority, but rather to
tremble himself through the fear of abusing it.
Great authority, with little or no virtue, is a very
dangerous state.

596 ST. JOHN.

" 11. Jesus answered, Thou couldest have no
power at all against me, except it were given thee
from above : therefore he that delivered me unto thee
hath the greater sin."

In what hands soever lawful authority is lodged,
we ought always to look upon it as coming from
above. The righteous know, that the very hairs of
their head are all numbered. Nothing surprises,
much less amazes them, because they have their eyes
always intently fixed upon him, who has his contin-
ually open upon them. Besides the general provi-
dence, which appoints good and permits evil, which
establishes all lawful authority, and regulates the
good or bad use thereof; the eternal counsels and
decrees of God concerning Christ, his church, and
his elect, ought to yield matter of great comfort and
confidence to those who suffer in his name. If to
abandon an innocent person to the calumny and
malice of men, be a great crime in one who has au-
thority in his hands, and consequently has a right,
and is under an obligation, both to speak and to act
in his behalf; how much more guilty is he who
delivers up an innocent person, when he knows not
only his innocence, but likewise the great designs
of God concerning him, and the works he intends to
effect by his means, having been fully informed of
these mysteries by the Scriptures and by private in-
structions ! Every one may apply these words to
particular cases.

" 12. And from thenceforth Pilate sought to re-
lease him : but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou
let this man go, thou art not Cesar's friend : whoso-
ever maketh himself a king speaketh against Cesar.

CHAPTER XIX. 597

13. f When Pilate therefore heard that saying, he
brought Jesus forth, and sat down in the judgment-
seat, in a place that is called the Pavement, but in
the Hebrew, Gabbatha."

God having condemned his Son to death, it is
not in the power of any man to deliver him from it.
Whoever is possessed with a design of making or
improving his fortune, will never perform his duty.
A judge, that he may not abuse his authority, must
be free from passion. He is no longer master of
his own conscience, from the time any private interest
has gained the ascendant there. When once a
judge, a magistrate, or any great person, has dis-
covered his weak side, the wicked know very well
how to draw him into their designs. Nothing but
an extraordinary grace can secure a man from their
snares, when it is his interest to keep fair with them.

" 14. And it was the preparation of the passover,
and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the
Jews, Behold your King !"

All that passed here was truly the preparation of
the grand passover, the passover of the Christians,
which was just going to be sacrificed. Would to
God there were not priests to be found even now,
who, as it were, prepare themselves for the Christian
passover and sacrifice, by calumniating and persecut-
ing their brethren, or by other sins, in the habitual
practice of which they allow themselves ! Since it
is by humiliations and sufferings that Christ is pleased
to establish his kingdom, this is the very time wherein
we ought to adore and receive him as the King of
our hearts. Yes, Lord, I know thee by these marks,
and own thee for my King. Cause me by thy grace

598 ST. JOHN.

so to imitate thy example, that thou mayest likewise
own and acknowledge me for thy subject.

" 15. But they cried out, Away with him, away
with him, crucify him. Pilate saith unto them,
Shall I crucify your King ? The chief priests an-
swered, We have no king but Cesar."

Whoever suffers avarice, ambition, or any other
sinful desire to reign in his heart, is very far from
owning or having Jesus Christ for his King. Our
tongues and our hands do even now continually cru-
cify him afresh, when our words and our works are
contrary to his law. These men require the death
of the Messias, whom they had desired, sued for,
and expected, during so many ages; and they sub-
mit to the yoke which they had so much detested
and abhorred: an unaccountable instance this of what
envy and hatred can do, when they are resolved to
satisfy themselves. When this double passion has
once taken full possession of the heart, a man knows
no other happiness but to revenge himself, and no
other misery but to have before his eyes the object
of his hatred and his envy. Piety only knows how
to reconcile the royal authority of Christ with that
of Cesar, the spiritual power with the temporal.
The more Christ reigns in our hearts, the greater
are our fidelity, submission, and obedience to our
temporal sovereigns.

Sect. III. — Christ delivered up to the Jews, car-
ries his Cross, and is Crucified, the title on the
Cross.

" 16. Then delivered he him therefore unto them
to be crucified. And they took Jesus, and led him
away."

CHAPTER XIX. 599

How many persons in the world side with Christ
at first, and abandon him afterwards to the wicked,
through cowardice, too great a regard to men, and
bad example ! There are more than we imagine,
whose hearts are like that of this pretended lover of
justice, who delivers up the person accused to his
enemies, not only without pronouncing sentence,
without any proof of his crime, but even owning and
acknowledging his innocence. Importunity and soli-
citation prevail at last upon a judge who hearkens
to worldly hopes or fears. The fear of displeasing
his prince, is the main spring of all the actions of a
courtier who has not the fear of God; and he is
always ready to sacrifice every thing to his master's
favour, and to deliver up every thing, rather than
run the least hazard of losing that.

" 17. ^[ And he, bearing his cross, went forth
into a place called the place of a skull, which is called
in the Hebrew, Golgotha;"

The true Isaac, as the victim of God, carries the
wood for his sacrifice ; as a conqueror, the arms with
which he is to vanquish sin, the world, and the devil ;
and as a king, the sceptre with which he is to rule
his people. This cross, the emblem of our sins,
with which Christ is loaded, is now immediately to
be the remedy and atonement for them. Let us
contemplate ourselves in our head and pattern : he
appears in our stead, and suffers that which we ought
to suffer. This spectacle, which seems so ignomi-
nious to the eyes of the flesh, is justly looked upon
by the eyes of faith as the object of our love and our
imitation throughout the whole course of our life.
Let us remember, that this is what our blessed Lord

600 ST. JOHN.

had in view when he said, " Whosoever will come
after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross,
and follow me." We must follow, and not go be-
fore him : for it is after his example that we must
bear the cross ; it is his cross which must attract and
draw us; and it is only by that grace which this cross
has merited for us, that we are enabled to bear it.

" 18. Where they crucified him, and two other
with him, on either side one, and Jesus in the midst."

Truth is always crucified in the midst of sinners,
as Christ was between two thieves. In like manner
virtue is placed between two opposite vices. The
Christians must follow Christ even upon the cross:
it is not enough only to bear it, he must also be
fastened to it. There are some crosses which are
honourable, and are attended with a glory which
makes the person crucified amends for what he suf-
fers : but such is not the cross of Christ, which is as
humbling as it is painful. It is humbling in itself,
being an object of malediction ; it is so, likewise, in
respect of the company in which he suffers, namely,
two thieves; and of his being placed between them
as the greatest criminal. How many important
truths are there to be learned at the foot of this cross !
How many duties to be paid ! How many graces
to be received ! Let us at least learn what our sins
deserved. Christ suffers, that he may cause us to
suffer with him in a holy manner, by his grace, and
according to the example of his humility and patience.

" 19. f And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on
the cross. And the writing was, Jesus of Naza-
reth, the King of the Jews. 20. This title
then read many of the Jews; for the place where

CHAPTER XIX. 601

Jesus vvas crucified was nigh to the city: and it
was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin."

The regal power of Jesus Christ on the cross was
attested and published even by his judge, to those
three different people, of whom the church was chiefly
to be composed, aud who at that time shared betwixt
them the religion, learning, and empire, which Christ
has united in his church. Those, whose design it
is to humble Christ, proclaim his greatness and his
glory without being sensible of it themselves. God
will always confound those who endeavour to humble
his elect. And the greater share these have in the
sufferings of their Head, the greater will thev have
in the glory of his kingdom. The royal dignity of
Christ can be neither destroyed nor impaired by the
ignominy of the cross ; since this very ignominy is
the foundation thereof. I adore thee, O Jesus,
under this external appearance so unworthy of thee,
as the only victim of God worthy to be offered to
him, as the sovereign High Priest of good things to
come, and as the King of everlasting glory.

" 21. Then said the chief priests of the Jews to
Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that
he said, I am King of the Jews. 22. Pilate an-
swered, What I have written I have written."

God by his wonderful power so disposes even of
the heart of the wicked, as to make them subservient
to his truth and his mysteries. Had Christ been
crucified merely as a false king, he could not have
been the victim of his people, and the salvation of
the world. This title, written in three different
languages, proves, by three eternal witnesses, the per-
fidiousness and sacrilegious wickedness of the Jews
Vol. III. 2 C 57

602 ST. JOHN.

against their King. The remembrance and remorse
of sm are an executioner which the sinner has always
before his eyes, and which he carries in the bottom
of his own conscience. No sooner has he committed
the sin, but he begins to be tormented by it. Could
he entirely blot out the remembrance of it upon
earth, it would signify nothing : it would still subsist
before God, and therefore it is out of his remem-
brance that he must earnestly endeavour to blot it,
which can be done by nothing but a true conversion
and repentance.

Sect. IV. — Christ's garments. His coat. The
blessed Virgin and John at the foot of the cross.

" 23. f Then the soldiers, when they had cruci-
fied Jesus, took his garments, and made four parts,
to every soldier a part; and also his coat: now the
coat was without seam, woven from the top through-
out. 24. They said therefore among themselves,
Let us not rend it, but cast lots for it, whose it shall
be : that the scripture might be fulfilled, which saith,
They parted my raiment among them, and for ray
vesture they did cast lots. These things therefore
the soldiers did."

The nakedness of Jesus Christ upon the cross, is
a circumstance which plainly shows us that he re-
fused no kind of humiliation for our sakes. He
endures this shame, that he may cover our sins from
his Father's sight. The first Adam by his sin de-
served this shame; the second Adam bears it, to
merit our deliverance from it ; to expiate the crime
of those who either are not ashamed of it, or even
take a pride therein ; and to strengthen us against

CHAPTER XIX. 603

the temptations which arise from this quarter. Every
thing here tends to make known the mysteries of the
cross and of the church. These upper garments,
divided into four parts, represent to us the vast ex-
tent of the church into the four parts of the world;
the under garment without seam, and which is pre-
served entire, denotes the unity of the church and of
the preaching of the word of the cross. Every thing
contributes to establish the belief of Christ's being
the Mcssias. The fulfilling of the prophecies de-
monstrates, that he is really the King of the Jews who
was therein foretold, and whose name and memory
they in vain endeavour to abolish. Those who di-
vide the church are more cruel than these heathen
soldiers, who would not divide the seamless coat of
Christ.

" 25. Now there stood by the cross of Jesus
his mother, and his mother's sister, Mary the wife of
Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene."

The blessed virgin is present at the foot of the
cross. She prefigures and foreshows the fidelity of
the church, the courage of the martyrs, and the con-
stancy even of the weaker sex, which death itself
will not be able to separate from the love of Christ,
through the grace received from his cross and passion.
The first-fruits of this victorious grace are given to
the three Marys. Peter, left to himself, denied
Christ, through fear of a maid and of some men-
servants ; Pilate delivered him up, out of a ground-
less apprehension of falling under some disgrace: but
these women surmount the fearfulness of their sex,
the horror of such a spectacle, the tenderness of
nature, the sense of the ignominy and disgrace in

2 c 2

604 ST. JOHN.

having a son and a master crucified between two
thieves, and the danger to which they are exposed
from the brutality of an enraged populace. What
inward strength and courage do persons receive at
the foot of the cross, when they render themselves
present there by a lively faith and with a Christian
confidence !

" 26. When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and
the disciple standing by whom he loved, he saith
unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son !"

Christ sanctifies, teaches, and encourages filial love
in Christians, by his faithfulness in performing the
duties of a son towards his holy mother, in the midst
of all the ignominies and horrors of death. It is a
practise worthy of a Christian, to reverence, to con-
template, and to imitate this courage and resolution
of Christ expiring on the cross, and to have recourse
to this mystery, in order to obtain that strength, that
presence of mind, and that judgment, which are ne-
cessary to enable us to discharge our duties upon the
bed and at the approach of death. How great a
privilege is it to John, to be substituted in the place
of Christ, by the appointment of Christ himself!
This privilege is likewise for us, since it is a mys-
terious and prophetical substitution of all the sons of
the church, who are all the brethren of Jesus Christ.
It would have been but a small consolation for the
blessed virgin, under the loss of a son who was God,
to have received John in his stead, had not this apostle
been to her a pledge, and, as it were, a sign and
visible sacrament, of that invisible presence, which
Christ wouid always continue in her heart.

" 27. Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy

CHAPTER XIX. 605

mother ! And from that hour that disciple took her
unto his own home."

John, in recompense of his virginal purity, re-
ceives the blessed virgin for his adopted mother:
and from hence we learn how much Christ loves that
virtue, and how much we ought to love and value it.
What may and ought we not to believe, concerning
the gratitude and acknowledgment with which John
received this precious trust, concerning the venera-
tion and filial obedience he showed towards her, and
concerning his fidelity, in profiting by a domestic
example so wonderful and extraordinary ! The
faithful attendance of John at the cross of Christ, is
likewise rewarded with this inestimable gift: by
which we are plainly informed, that Christ vouch-
safes to share his richest treasure with those who
imitate his purity and charity, who are not ashamed
of his humiliations, and who love his cross.

Sect. V. — Christ thirsts. All things accomplished.
His death. No bone of him broken. His side
pierced.

" 28. % After this, Jesus knowing that all things
were now accomplished, that the scripture might be
fulfilled, saith, I thirst."

The thirst of Jesus Christ expiates the intemper-
ance of Adam and of his children. The thirst of his
heart after the glory of his Father, and the salvation
of sinners, was without comparison more vehement.
Is that excessive tenderness towards themselves sup-
portable in some Christians, who, even upon days of
fasting, cannot endure a little thirst by way of mor-
tification, when they see Jesus Christ endure a thirst

606 ST. JOHN.

so vehement that he complains thereof, though he
suffered so many torments without opening his mouth ?
Ought the false maxim of a casuist, who tells us that
a draught of any thing does not break our fast, to
have more influence upon us to induce us to trans-
gress the law of fasting, than the example of Jesus
Christ to encourage us to endure hunger and thirst?
Christ complains of thirst, only that he may suffer
the more, that he may prove the reality of his incar-
nation and his sufferings, and fulfil the prophecies
in the minutest circumstance. Let thy adorable
thirst, O Jesus, extinguish our thirst after the false
enjoyments of this world, and all those vain desires
which continually prey upon our hearts.

" 29. Now there was set a vessel full of vinegar:
and they filled a spunge with vinegar, and put it
upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth."

The tongue of Jesus Christ undergoes its parti-
cular torment, to atone for the ill use which men
make of theirs by blasphemies, evil-speaking, vanity,
lying, gluttony, and daintiness. See here the com-
fort and refreshment which men give to him who lays
down his life for them. A true representation this
of the ingratitude, sourness, envy, and of the total
corruption of the heart, which is all we have of our
own stock to give in return for the transcendent love
of our blessed Saviour. What an exchange is this!
a vessel full of vinegar for the effusion of his blood
upon us. Can we after this complain of the ingrati-
tude of men towards us, and of the little comfort we
sometimes receive from our friends?

" 30. When Jesus therefore had received the
vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his
head, and gave up the ghost."

CHAPTER XIX. 607

This action of Jesus Christ is an adorable example
of fidelity, which we ought to imitate in bearing
mortification to the time of our death, and in drink-
ing whatever Christ has reserved for us of the sour-
ness and bitterness of his cup. My God, what
comfort and consolation is it to a faithful soul, in the
midst of the sharpest pains, to be able to say at the
hour of death, that all is finished, that all the designs
of God concerning it are accomplished by its obe-
dience ! It is requisite that our life should not be
torn from us, as it were, by violence, but that we
should, after the example of our Head, render it up
with a willing mind to him who gave it us. It is a
sacrifice, it must therefore be voluntary. It is a
homage, it must be full of submission. It is a res-
titution, and must be made with a love of justice.
And it is a satisfaction, and therefore it must be hum-
ble. The death of Jesus Christ is the accomplish-
ment of the Scriptures. It teaches us to resign
ourselves up to God at the hour of death. In order
to obtain the blessing of a happy death, it is of the
greatest use imaginable frequently to honour that of
Jesus Christ, which is the source from whence the
grace enabling us to die well is derived.

" 31. % The Jews therefore, because it was the
preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon
the cross on the sabbath-day, (for that sabbath-day
was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs
might be broken, and that they might be taken away."

In vain does the sinner endeavour to bury the
memory of his crimes; his sin will always rise up
against him. The greatest joy of these persons but
a few hours ago, was to see Jesus Christ upon the

608 ST. JOHN.

cross: now they cannot endure the sight of him there.
The pleasure of revenge is soon changed into an ab-
horrence of the crime which it has caused a man to
commit. There are even at this day some such
hypocrites as these, who make no scruple of prepar-
ing themselves for the great festivals of the church,
by crucifying the Son of God by their sins, and who
are never ashamed of them but only in the sight of
men. They are careful how to conceal, but not how
to expiate their crimes.

" 32. Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs
of the first, and of the other which was crucified with
him. 33. But when they came to Jesus, and saw
that he was dead already, they brake not his legs :"

We must take the greatest care to preserve always
the unity of Christ's mystical body, in the midst of
persecutions, and even- in death itself; as he here
preserves his natural body whole and entire. This
body, by being sacrificed, is become the victim and
holocaust of God : and therefore men have no longer
the least pretence of right in it, nor is it in their
power from henceforth to make any attempt upon it.
Christ, by preventing this new design of his enemies,
intended to make it evident, that he gave up his life
freely and voluntarily. We may well believe that
he was really dead, since they made him suffer no
more.

" 34. But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced
his side, and forthwith came thereout blood and wa-
ter. 35. And he that saw it bare record, and his
record is true; and he knoweth that he saith true,
that ye might believe."

The death of Christ, which is the salvation of the

CHAPTER XIX. 609

world, ought to be rendered certain and indubitable
by all sorts of proofs and testimonies: by that of the
soldiers, who were going to break his legs; of the
centurion, who saw him expire; of the soldier, who
with his spear pierced his side ; of the guards, who
stood round about him, and who, from the impression
his death made upon them, believed in him ; of the
people, who smote their breasts as they returned ;
and lastly, of the disciple, who took particular notice
of every thing, and saw the blood and water flow out
of his side. This affords a new assistance and sup-
port to our faith, and is a new benefit conferred upon
us by the goodness of God. Christ would not have
one drop of his blood remain unshed for the salva-
tion of mankind. It is all for us, he reserves not
the least part of it for himself. The wound in our
blessed Saviour's side ought to be most dear and
amiable to us, since it is from this mysterious open-
ing of his heart, after he was dead, that the sacra-
ments of life proceed. The death of Christ is so
far from rendering him of no use to us, that it be-
gins to form his church, and, by the water of baptism,
to fix and establish therein a fountain of purity and
holiness, which will never cease to flow after his
death, but which receives all its virtue and efficacy
from his meritorious blood. It is not sufficient that
our blessed Saviour wash us; he must likewise feed
and renew us. O wonderful transfusion of the
blood of Christ, from the Head into the members,
from his natural into his mystical body, from the
side of Jesus Christ into the Christian's heart !
Let faith and gratitude continually open mine to re-

2c3

610 ST. JOHN.

ceive the quickening virtue of this blood, which con-
veys eternal life to us.

" 36. For these things were done, that the scrip-
ture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be
broken."

The truth of the prophecies and the power of God
evidently appear from hence, that not only every
thing which the Jews did against Christ was exactly
foretold, but even their designs and attempts against
him, which he rendered ineffectual, were so too.
The scripture fulfilled literally in the figurative
lamb, was only a type of the literal accomplishment
which it was to have in the true Lamb prefigured
thereby. It is likewise still continually fulfilled,
both in the church, which God will always preserve
entire and in unity ; and in the saints, whom he fills
with his strength, and whenever he pleases secures
so effectually, as not to suffer a hair of their head to
perish, notwithstanding all the power of their enemies.

"37. And again another scripture saith, They
shall look on him whom they pierced."

Christ will come to judge the world in the very
same flesh in which he was crucified, that he may
put his enemies to shame and confusion. Let us
with humility, faith, love, and gratitude, look upon
him whom we ourselves have pierced. Let us enter
into that heart which was opened by and for us.
Let us not close it up by our ingratitude, after hav-
ing pierced it ourselves by our blind rage and fury.
Grant, O Jesus, that thy cross may, through thy
grace, be now the object of my desires and my re-
ligion, to the end I may not be of the number of
those to whom, at the last day, it will be only an ob-
ject of horror and despair.

CHAPTER XIX. 611

Sect. VI. — Joseph and Nicodemus. Christ's
Burial.

" 38. f And after this, Joseph of Arimathea,
(being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of
the Jews,) besought Pilate that he might take away
the body of Jesus : and Pilate gave him leave. He
came therefore, and took the body of Jesus."

How wonderful is the power of Christ's death,
which gives those the courage to confess him pub-
licly under his greatest humiliation, who confessed
him only secretly whilst he wrought so many mira-
cles ! Let us reverence this power, that we may re-
ceive from it the strength and resolution to live in
the spirit of his cross, and not to be ashamed either
of him or his humiliations. God delays not the
effect of his promises relating either to the saints or
to their Head. Scarce have they sunk under the
power of the world, but he begins to raise them
again, and to defeat the designs of their enemies.
The Jews have Jesus Christ no longer in their
power: God raises up holy persons, to intrust them
with these precious remains.

" 39. And there came also Nicodemus, (which at
the first came to Jesus by night,) and brought a
mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound
weight. 40. Then took they the body of Jesus,
and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the
manner of the Jews is to bury."

St. John mentions with so much care the timo-
rousness of these two disciples, on purpose to make
us admire this great change wrought in them by the
right hand of the Most High, and to cause us to

612 ST. JOHN. ,.

give glory to his grace. God sometimes defers
healing the infirmities of his servants, that their
cure, and the power of his grace, may shine forth
more illustriously on some singular and important
occasion which is to happen. This reason ought to
restrain us from censuring such persons too severely,
or in an insulting manner, in hopes that God will
strengthen them in his appointed time. In this
costly hurial of his Son, God authorizes the last re-
spects which we pay to the bodies of the deceased.
He causes that poverty, which Christ retained even
to his grave, to be honoured by the liberality of his
servants. If we have any thing extraordinary to
spend on such occasions as this, we ought to lay it
out in honour of such holy persons as have been ill
treated and oppressed by the power of the world :
this is to contribute to the vindication of providence,
and to the performance of the promises of God.

"41. Now in the place where he was crucified
there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepul-
chre, wherein was never man yet laid. 42. There
laid they Jesus therefore, because of the Jews' pre-
paration-day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand."

This new sepulchre in which Jesus is laid after
his death, is an emblem of the virgin's womb in
which he was conceived, and of the heart of a
Christian who is desirous to receive him worthily.
It is not sufficient, only to die to sin by baptism or
repentance, we must likewise bury the body of sin,
and hide ourselves from the world by silence and re-
tirement, every one according to his state and con-
dition. Every thing here is subservient to the mys-
teries of Christ. The Jewish Sabbath serves to

CHAPTER XX. 613

represent and to accomplish the Sabbath or rest of
his body in the sepulchre, which is only the prepara-
tion for that great Sabbath or rest, which he will
quickly enjoy in glory. Happy those pious souls
who have suffered themselves to be laid, as it were,
in the sepulchre of a holy retirement, there to keep
the Sabbath in abstaining from sin and from all
worldly vanities, and to wait for the eternal Sabbath
of God which is reserved for all faithful souls !

CHAPTER XX.

Sect. I. — Mary Magdalene goes ft om the Sepulchre
to the Apostles. Peter and John run thither.

" 1. The first day of the week corneth Mary
Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the
sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the
sepulchre."

Christ's death does not cool or slacken the ardent
zeal of Mary Magdalene. She knows that she must
surmount all obstacles in order to seek and find Jesus
Christ. Let us learn of her also now, not to lose
any time, when we have any good work to accom-
plish. A faithful soul stops therein for a while,
when it meets with natural or religious impediments,
such as were the night and the Sabbath to Mary
Magdalene : but as soon as ever they are removed,
it returns to its work without the least delay. The
diligence of this eminent soul receives an immediate
reward. Nothing is given to God gratis. God
himself takes away the hinderances which obstruct our
endeavours in doing good, when we have been so

614 ST. JOHN.

faithful as to overcome our own sloth, and have been
stopped by nothing but the invincible difficulty of
other obstacles.

" 2. Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon
Peter, and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved,
and saith unto them, They have taken away the
Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where
they have laid him."

A faithful soul, which thinks it has lost Christ,
is deeply sensible of its loss — it sighs, it weeps, and
leaves no means untried to find him again. The first
thing it has to do, is to go to Peter and John, that
is, to a holy pastor who has both authority and char-
ity. It sometimes happens that Christ goes in some
manner out of a heart which is his living sepulchre,
by depriving it of his sensible presence only to try it;
and a timorous soul is afraid that its own faults have
driven or taken him away. Solicitude and grief are
a plain indication of our love for that which we have
lost: and when we have a love for it, we entreat
every body to assist us in recovering it. That hu-
mility which inspires us with a sense of our own
weakness, and causes us to seek for assistance, is a
very proper means to qualify us to find Jesus Christ.
It is in the church, and to the ministers thereof,
that Christ has left his authority and his love. It
is thither that souls must have recourse in their
troubles and their wants.

" 3. Peter therefore went forth, and that other
disciple, and came to the sepulchre."

A pastor, when called to the assistance of souls,
ought to be very ready to go to them. When to
assist a soul in seeking Christ requires his presence,

CHAPTER XX. 615

he must lay every thing aside. Authority ought
never to go without charity : these two must be in-
separable companions in a pastor. Authority goes
foremost, and begins the outward action ; but charity
goes along with it. Mission is the first external
qualification of a pastor ; but pastoral charity is the
very life and soul of his mission. Grant, O Lord,
that in thy church we may never see authority with-
out charity; and that the most eminent in authority
may be the most eminent in charity !

" 4. So they ran both together : and the other
disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the se-
pulchre."

We must love like Peter, and be loved like John,
in order to run to seek Jesus Christ : but before we
can either love or run, we ourselves must be loved.
It is neither to him who willeth, nor to him who
runneth, that the glory of the good-will and of the
race is due; but to him who showeth mercy in pre-
venting both with his love. Charity, by the fer-
vency of its desires, always gets the start, and runs
before authority to prepare the way for it, and to
keep it from depressing those with all its weight who
are as yet but weak. The tenderness and compas-
sion of the pastoral charity, must make the first ap-
proach to a heart which is become a sepulchre void
of Jesus Christ.

" 5. And he stooping down, and looking in, saw
the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in."

The illuminated and respectful love of John repre-
sents to us the contemplative life, which is chiefly
employed in devotion and in the study of truth. It
is this love which discovers truth ; but before it pre-

616 ST. JOHN.

tends to penetrate into it, and to adhere thereto, it
waits till the authority of the church examine it, and
the pastors approve of it. John sees the linen clothes
by stooping down. It is by humility that prayer and
contemplative love discover the truth. The linen
clothes in which the body of Christ was wrapped,
are an emblem of the word and of the Scripture, in
which the divine truths are as it were closely wrapped
up. How mean and humble soever this word may
appear, which, as well as Christ himself, came down
from heaven to earth, let us love it, and meditate
upon it, with that care and reverence which are due
to the word of God.

" 6. Then cometh Simon Peter following him,
and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen
clothes lie, 7. And the napkin, that was about his
head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped
together in a place by itself. 8. Then went in also
that other disciple which came first to the sepulchre,
and he saw, and believed."

The ardent and faithful love of Peter represents
to us the active life, and the exercise of authority in
the pastors. It belongs chiefly to them to enter into
the sanctuary of the truths of faith, by searching into
Scripture, and to publish those truths to the flock.
Faith may be compared to a veil for the head, which
is folded up. It is a part of the pastoral authority
to judge of it, and to unfold the mysteries thereof to
the charity of the faithful. It belongs to the pastors
to initiate them in the mysteries of faith, and to dis-
cover the secrets of religion to them with authority.
Grant, Lord, that authority may always guide char-
ity into the adorable recesses of the Scripture and of

CHAPTER XX. 617

truth ; and that charity may follow authority thither,
and in this respect obediently submit to its direc-
tion.

" 9. For as yet they knew not the scripture, that
he must rise again from the dead. 10. Then the
disciples went away again unto their own home."

Why did Jesus Christ leave his apostles so long
in io-norance, if it were not to teach both them and
us, that it is only by means of his light and grace
that the knowledge of the truth is to be attained?

Sect. II. — The Appearance of two Angels and of
Christ to Maty Magdalene.

" 11. 51 But Mary stood without at the sepul-
chre weeping: and, as she wept, she stooped down,
and looked into the sepulchre,"

The love of pious Mary Magdalene is constant
and persevering in the search after her Saviour: let
ours be so too, in imitation of her example. Happy
is that person who weeps for the death of Christ !
He shall be comforted, as she was, with the. joy of
his new life. Christ suffers those whom he loves,
and by whom he is loved, to weep; because there is
nothing better in this life than a heart afflicted for
the sake of Christ. Nothing prepares us better for
the visitations and graces of our blessed Saviour,
than the tears of repentance, or those which flow from
our grief for the heavenly Bridegroom's absence, and
from our ardent desire to possess him. These tears
ought to be accompanied with humility and lowli-
ness of mind, and with a diligent inquiry and search
after the desired good.

" 12. And seeth two angels in white sitting, the

618 ST. JOHN.

one at the head, and the other at the feet, where the
body of Jesus had lain."

Christ comforts those by degrees who are his.
First, he here gives them consolation by his angels
and his servants. God never fails to send comfort-
ers to those souls who expect them only from him.
To look for visits from angels would be dangerous ;
but the ministers of our blessed Lord are visible
angels, who ought to be to us instead, not only of
angels, but of Jesus Christ himself. It is probable
that these two angels, sitting at these places, were
before employed there in worshipping Christ, and in
paying their homage to this adorable dead person.
They had served him and ministered unto him during
his mortal life, and they did not abandon him in the
grave. Mary Magdalene joins with them in their
duties, and imitates their piety; and they take part
in her grief, and come to comfort her.

" 13. And they say unto her, Woman, why
weepest thou? She saith unto them, Because they
have taken away my Lord, and I know not where
they have laid him."

Jesus Christ is, in a peculiar manner, the Lord of
those who seek him with the tears of repentance. It
is one part of Christian consolation, to engage a soul,
afflicted at the absence of its Lord, in discourse con-
cerning him, and to give it occasion to speak of the
chief object of its desires. It is the method of God's
conduct towards us, to prepare us for the favours he
designs us, by renewing our application, our fervency,
and our desires, in relation to him or to his graces.
Mary Magdalene is so taken up with the thoughts
of her Saviour, that she supposes that every body

CHAPTER XX. 619

thinks of him as well as she ; and that any one must
read in her heart the name of him whom she seeks.
Would to God our hearts might always be found full
of such ardent zeal, and thus eagerly desirous to en-
joy our God and our Saviour.

" 14. And when she had thus said, she turned
herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not
that it was Jesus."

The second consolation which God gives his ser-
vants in this life, is by the presence of Jesus Christ
himself, but unknown. The impatience of Mary
Magdalene, inflamed with a holy passion for Christ,
causes her to cast her eyes on every side, to see if
she can discover the object of her love. There is no
rest here on earth for one who loves God; and much
less for one who does not love him. None for the
latter, because he seeks his happiness where he can
never find it ; none for the former, because he has
not yet found him whom he seeks. Grant, O Lord,
that I may never have any concern or inquietude,
but only with regard to thee; and that I may have
a lively sense of thy absence and of my own banish-
ment.

" 15. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weep-
est thou? whom seekest thou ? She, supposing him
to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have
borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him,
and I will take him away."

The third consolation which Christ gives his ser-
vants, is by his word. He expresses in two words,
zveepest and seekest^ the whole employment of Mary
Magdalene's love : and this is all which a penitent
has to do. To weep without seeking, is a slothful

620 ST. JOHN.

and inactive repentance ; to seek without weeping, is
a rash and presumptuous one. Give me, Lord, I
beseech thee, both these motions of penitential love,
that I may weep on the account of my sins, and that
I may seek thy grace. A firm and steadfast love,
like that of Marv Magdalene, is neither frishrened
nor perplexed with anything; nothing being impos-
sible to one who loves. The difficulty of undertak-
ing that which is good is generally great, for no
other reason but only because the love we have for
it is but small. The love of Mary Magdalene looks
upon dangers and difficulties as nothing; forasmuch
as she counts it her gain to lose every thing in seek-
ing him who alone is the true, and therefore her only
good. Let us be ashamed of our lukewarmness.
The only cause why we are so remiss and uncon-
cerned about the interests of God, is because we love
some other thino; which we do not love for his sake.

" 16. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned
herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni ; which is to
say, Master."

The fourth consolation which Christ, risen from
the dead, bestows upon his servants, is the making
of himself known to them. The word of Jesus
Christ is full of light, and illuminates the eyes and
the mind of those who love him. How great is the
power of one single word in the mouth of Christ !
How deeply does it penetrate and afFect a heart,
which has been acquainted therewith by means of a
long familiarity with him in prayer, and meditation
upon his word ! The word of Christ works no farther
upon the heart than he intends it should work. It
draws from the mouth of Mary M^iodalene a com-

CHAPTER XX. 621

pendious confession of faith. Christ is really be-
come, after a new manner, the Master of Mary Mag-
dalene, of all men whom he has redeemed with his
blood, and of the whole world which he has purchased
by his cross. Let us remember, and frequently say
to ourselves, that he is our Master, that we ought to
serve and please none but him, and ultimately to refer
every thing to him alone.

" 17. Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I
am not yet ascended to my Father : but go to my
brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Fa-
ther, and your Father; and to my God, and your
God."

The fifth consolation which Christ gives his ser-
vants, is in discovering to them the secret and the
spirit of all his mysteries. The sixth and last is, the
giving them the grace to make those mysteries known
to others. The sanctity of the mystery of the re-
surrection, requires a worship which is more spiritual
and disengaged from sense. Earth is not the place
where we are to enjoy the chaste embraces of the
Bridegroom. Now is the time only to hear his voice,
and to obey it ; to behold him, as it were, disguised
under the appearance of a stranger, but not to touch
him by having the advantage of a clear and open
sight. What comfort and consolation is it to us to
have the same God and Father with Jesus Christ, as
being his brethren ! This is an instance of the most
exceeding goodness, and such as is altogether divine,
that Christ, in the state of his power, should vouch-
safe to call those by this name, who had either de-
nied or forsaken him in the days of his humiliation
and sufferings. Men are very far from forgettino

622 ST. JOHN.

so soon the occasions of their resentment. Thus to
call them his brethren and the children of God, is
to give them assurance of making them partakers
with himself of the heavenly inheritance. And no-
thing can be more comfortable or more suitable to
this mystery.

" 18. Mary Magdalene came and told the dis-
ciples that she had seen the Lord, and that he had
spoken these things unto her."

Is it thus, O Lord, that thou so quickly sendest
away a pious soul, which has sought thee so long,
and with so many tears? She does not make the
least complaint on this account : it is sufficient for
her to know that thou, her Lord and Saviour, art
alive, victorious over death and over all thy enemies.
She sought thee out of the love she bore towards
thee, and not out of love to herself. Mary Magda-
lene is a new apostle, and the first who preaches Je-
sus Christ risen from the dead. It is her whole joy
to do the will of her Master, and to make him known
to men by executing his commission. Whoever is
honoured with the mission of Christ, ought to quit
the complacency and satisfaction which he finds at
his feet, in contemplating and meditating upon his
mysteries by himself, that he may publish and impart
the knowledge of him to others.

Sect. III. — Jesus appears to the Apostles, and
gives them the Holy Ghost.

" 19. ^| Then the same day at evening, being the
first day of the week, when the doors were shut where
the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews,
came Jesus, and stood in the midst, and saith unto
them, Peace be unto you."

CHAPTER XX. 623

The wishes of Christ have always their effect.
He conveys peace into the bottom of hearts when-
ever he desires it for them. The reconciliation be-
twixt God and man is finished and completed by the
resurrection of Christ ; and it is the grace of this
mystery which he here makes known to them. He
comes on purpose, by his peace, to fortify the minds
of his disciples against the fear of the world, which
he has so lately overcome upon the cross, by sinking
under the efforts of its malice. None but Christ,
raised from the dead, could possibly dispel that, fear
which had seized them from the time of their en-
trance into the garden of olives. It is good to have
recourse to this mystery against the terrors of the
world, and against inward troubles; and to beseech
Jesus Christ to pronounce over us these words,
" Peace be unto you." He will not pronounce them
in vain.

" 20. And when he had so said, he showed unto
them his hands and his side. Then were the dis-
ciples glad when they saw the Lord."

Jesus retains the scars of his wounds, on purpose
to show that he triumphed only by sufferings; to
confirm the truth of his incarnation, death, and re-
surrection ; to excite in us a constant sense of grati-
tude; and to offer continually to his Father the price
of our redemption. The glorious wounds of Christ
have nothing now in them but what affords consola-
tion and strength to his true disciples. He teaches
us never to separate in this life these two mysteries,
Jesus crucified, and Jesus risen again ; since he unites
them in his person and his glory, and proves the one
by the other to his apostles. We may justly say,

624 ST. JOHN.

that the great devotion of the church, in relation to
these two mysteries, began here: a devotion which
Christ himself inspired into the apostles, and which
the apostles settled in the church. Let us receive it
from her, and show ourselves faithful in the obser-
vance of it.

" 21. Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be
unto you : as my Father hath sent me, even so send
I you."

The mission of Jesus Christ, in order to his bring-
ing peace to men, is the source and the pattern of
the mission of his ministers, as to the principle, the
power, the end, the manner, and the love thereof,
&c. The gifts of God, and especially the evangeli-
cal mission, ought to be received in the peace of
heart. To qualify a man to receive a commission to
preach Jesus Christ to the world, it is necessary that
he should have this peace; not a human peace, which
arises from presumption, but the peace of Christ,
which proceeds from a just confidence alone in his
grace and his protection. This " as" affords a large
field of meditation. Some men take great delight
when any occasion is offered to extol the dignity of
the apostolical mission, and to compare that of bishops
and pastors with that of Jesus Christ. But with
what shame and fear ought they to be filled, if they
do but compare the life, the conduct, and the deport-
ment of Christ, with the lives and conversations of
those who glory in being partakers of his mission !
They ought to depend upon it as certain, that they
are sent only upon the same conditions, and for the
same end, namely, to preach the truth, and to estab-
lish the kingdom of God, by opposing the corruption

CHAPTER XX. 625

of the world, and by suffering and acting to the end
for the advancement of his glory.

" 22. And when he had said this, he breathed on
them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy
Ghost:"

Jesus Christ, who, together with the Father, is
the principle from whence the Holy Ghost proceeds,
by the very same power whereby he bestowed on
man in creating him a reasonable soul, which is an
emanation from, and a participation of, the supreme
and sovereign reason, does now breathe into the Chris-
tian the Holy Ghost as a second soul, as the new
principle of the new life. That which Jesus Christ
is hereafter to do invisibly from heaven in his church,
he now does visibly on earth, to show us that he
himself in his human nature is the true principle from
which it is all derived. The laity receive the Holy
Ghost only for themselves ; priests and bishops re-
ceive it for the good of others. That person is no
other than a monster in the church, who by his sa-
cred office is a dispenser of the Holy Spirit, and who
by the corruption of his own heart, and by a disor-
derly, worldly, voluptuous, and scandalous life, is at
the same time a member and instrument of the devil.

" 23. Whose soever sins ye remit, they are re-
mitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain,
they are retained."

The Holy Ghost is given to the apostles, and to
priests, that they may remit or retain sins, according
as they shall judge that he himself remits or retains
them. That such a judgment may be pronounced
upon sinners as is fit to be approved of God, and to
be confirmed in heaven, it must be such as is accord-

Vol. III. 2D 57

626 ST. JOHN.

ing to the Spirit of God, who is given for that pur-
pose, and to the rules prescribed by Christ to sinners,
of which the priest is only the minister. To see
the conduct of abundance of priests, one would ima-
gine that they had received only the power of re-
mitting sin, and that the power of retaining it was
forbid them. This is to divide and separate words
which are inseparable.

Sect. VI. — Thomas sees and believes. Many mira-
cles not written.

" 24. % But Thomas, one of the twelve, called
Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came."

There is no salvation for any person, unless he
keep himself inseparably united to the society of
Christ's disciples, and to the body of the pastors of
his Church. This absence of Thomas had other
reasons in the purposes and designs of God than
what appear to the eyes of men. We always lose
very considerably when we forsake the assemblies of
the faithful. It is to unity that Christ manifests
himself, and not to singularity. It is to the apos-
tolic church that God reveals his truth, and not to
any number of persons separated from the church,
and cut off from its unity. Thomas is not at all
concerned at his misfortune and loss, because he is
insensible of it, and even thinks that he has lost no-
thing. Thus it is with respect to those who return
to the unity of the church ; they often return but
imperfectly at first, and are not thoroughly sensible
how much they have lost during their separation,
until they have continued for some time in the church,
and until Christ has likewise there manifested him-
self to them.

CHAPTER XX. 627

c< 25. The other disciples therefore said unto him,
We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them,
Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails,
and put my finger into the print of the nails, and
thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe."

Christ permits the incredulity of one apostle, in
order to strengthen the faith of the whole church,
by showing that his most intimate friends did not
believe his resurrection, until they were forced, as it
were, by the evidence of the clearest proofs and most
indisputable testimonies. Observe here the delusion
of the mind of man, to imagine, that his senses will
be more faithful witnesses to him of the truth, than
the word of truth itself. With what resolutions
soever a man arms his heart against faith, God knows
very well in what part to assault it, so as to subdue
it thereto. He would not have left Thomas so long
in this state of infidelity and rebellion, had he not
designed to make it subservient to promote the hu-
mility of this disciple, the glory of his own grace,
the conversion of unbelievers, &c.

" 26. % And after eight days, again his disciples
were within, and Thomas with them. Then came
Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst,
and said, Peace be unto you."

God frequently does as much for one particular
soul as for many others. Observe here the surpris-
ing and wonderful goodness of our blessed Saviour,
who does not at all lessen the value of the favour
done the rest of his disciples, by doing it for the sake
of this one, but takes occasion from his absence to
honour and comfort them all a second time. A holy
and happy octave this for these disciples, begun and

2d2

628 ST. JOHN.

ended with the same grace and favour ! This af-
fords matter of consolation to such souls as are some-
times hindered from solemnizing the great mysteries
on the proper days: the octave supplies that defect.
But to our greater comfort and consolation it is like-
wise a figure of that grand octave of the resurrection,
which we shall celebrate in heaven, where Jesus will
consummate our faith, where he will be present with
his disciples, where he will manifest himself unto
them, where he will shed abroad in their hearts an
inconceivable peace, and settle them in the possession
of it for ever, exclusively of the world, against which
the gate of heaven shall be shut to all eternity.

" 27. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither
thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither
thy hand, and thrust it into my side : and be not
faithless, but believing."

Let us admire the charity, the mildness, and the
application of the good Shepherd, in healing those
who are not yet strong enough in the faith. If the
faith of Thomas did not precede this experiment
made with his hands, it is an extraordinary instance
of condescension in Christ to permit him to take this
freedom. And if he did believe before he touched
our blessed Saviour's body, Christ thereby shows,
that he has more command over the heart of man,
than man himself, and that whenever he pleases he
is able to make him change his resolutions. Christ
here suffers the mind of man to satisfy itself by ex-
perience; but the reprehension which he immediately
subjoins, is a sufficient token that he does not ap-
prove of the imperfection which caused this sort of
evidence to be desired. This charitable reprehen-

CHAPTER XX. 629

sion, accompanied with the internal operation of
Christ, contributed more than any thing besides to
the opening of Thomas' eyes.

" 28. And Thomas answered and said unto him,
My Lord and my God."

This elevation of the heart, and this short, ready,
fervent, and perfect confession of faith, afford us a
pattern of that confession which we ought to make
every moment, if possible, and which nothing hinders
us from renewing; on all occasions. Thomas was
the last in believing, but he is the first of the apos-
tles who distinctly confesses the divinity of Christ
since his death. It is in this effect of the resurrec-
tion that Christ makes his divinity evidently appear
under his humanity itself. Thomas beholds him in
his human nature, and he therein discovers his Lord ;
he opens his eyes to miracles, and in them he finds
the proofs of his divine nature. Thou, O Jesus,
art truly the Lord of my soul, since thou hast re-
deemed it by the sacrifice of thy human nature.
Thou art its God, because thou art its sanctification
by thy grace and thy Spirit, and its chief good and
eternal happiness by thy glory.

" 29. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou
hast seen me, thou hast believed : blessed are they
that have not seen, and yet have believed."

Blessed is that heart which is endued with docility
in respect of the divine word. Faith and charity
have no manner of dependence upon sight, which on
the contrary is apt to lessen the value of them.
This sentence is full of comfort to those who have
not seen Jesus Christ in the flesh, and have known
him only by means of the gospel. How perfect so-

630 ST. JOHN.

ever the faith of Thomas might possibly be, yet it
had always these two defects, namely, that it was too
slow, and that he would have it depend upon sight.
We must endeavour to find the exact medium be-
tween a precipitate and rash faith, and one which is
too backward and timorous. To be able to do this,
is undoubtedly an effect of thy grace, O Lord, and
a gift of thy Spirit, the glory whereof is entirely due
to thee alone.

" 30. 5f And many other signs truly did Jesus in
the presence of his disciples, which are not written
in this book :"

What a multitude of unprofitable books are there
in the world, while we are left in ignorance concern-
ing so many wonders done by the Son of God. It
was only for the instruction of the disciples that many
signs and miracles were wrought. A pastor ought
not to neglect any soul; but there are some souls
which are given to him in a peculiar manner, and of
which he ought to take a peculiar care. The hav-
ing good things to write, is not a sufficient reason to
engage men in writing books; since John leaves so
many miracles of Christ buried in silence : they must
likewise have some token of the will of God, or some
engagement from his providence, and must take care,
that they be not influenced to undertake that work
by self-love rather than by the love of truth, or by a
desire either to make it known, or to defend it.

" 31. But these are written, that ye might believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God ; and that
believing ye might have life through his name."

That person does by no means answer the designs
of God who neglects to read the gospel, which was

CHAPTER XXI. 631

written on purpose to establish a lively belief of the
divinity and incarnation of Christ in souls, and to
guide them to eternal life. It is neither his own
satisfaction, nor the love of the world's esteem, nor
a desire to entertain the curiosity of the public, which
induces a man of God to write concerning the things
of God ; but it is a desire to make God known, and
to promote the salvation of his brethren, by ex-
plaining the truths of Christianity and the mysteries
of our blessed Saviour: it is particularly, his love of
God, and of the church militant here on earth, and
the perfecting of the body of Jesus Christ in heaven.

CHAPTER XXI.

Sect. I. — Christ's appearance at the Sea of Tibe-
rias. The miraculous Fishing.

" 1. After these things Jesus showed himself
again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias; and on
this wise showed he himself. 2. There were to-
gether Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus,
and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of
Zebedee, and two other of his disciples. 3. Simon
Peter saith unto them, 1 go a fishing. They say
unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth,
and entered into a ship immediately; and that night
they caught nothing."

This fishing of the apostles exhibits to us a re-
presentation of that which relates to souls, wherein
a man must labour in the spirit of charity and unity
to draw them out of the abyss of sin. But without
Jesus Christ they labour only in the dark and to no

632 ST. JOHN.

purpose. Peter, the first in the list of the apostles,
is the first also in labour: it is his part to invite
others thereto, and to encourage them in it by his
own example. A zealous and apostolical pastor,
willingly sacrifices the repose of the night to the
exercise of his ministry and to the salvation of souls.
It frequently happens, that a good pastor takes abun-
dance of pains in relation to souls, and yet is not
able to gain even one. But God will place all his
labour to account, as much as if he had converted
multitudes. This fishing, which figuratively repre-
sents to us the preaching of the gospel, does even
literally denote that which the apostles did afterwards,
who led constantly a laborious life, and were very
far from taking advantage of their dignity, to draw
from the hands of the faithful such contributions as
might enable them to live at their ease. They are
not ashamed to live by their own labour; and all
along their humility, their poverty, and their labori-
ous life, instruct and encourage their successors to
imitate their example.

" 4. But when the morning was now come, Jesus
stood on the shore; but the disciples knew not that
it was Jesus. 5. Then Jesus saith unto them, Chil-
dren, have ye any meat? They answered him, No."

The condescension of Jesus Christ, after he was
risen from the dead, is a figure of that which the
most eminent and perfect pastors owe to the most
weak. This extreme poverty of the apostles, of
persons who are just going to subdue the world to
Christ, plainly shows how much he despises wealth ;
since he does not think fit to make any use at all of
the power of his new state, to free them from poverty.

CHAPTER XXI. 633

He frequently permits those whom he loves best to
labour for a long time, and in the night of affliction,
before he comes to their assistance; because affliction
and labour endured in his Spirit, are much more for
their advantage than any temporal relief. However,
he is never wanting to them in time of pressing need.
The kindness and goodness with which he prevents
their application to him, instructs the rich how to
anticipate and prevent the requests of the poor.
We may here behold a rough draught of this pre-
sent life. It is no more than one night, during
which we labour continually in the midst of the sea
of this world. Happy that morning, when we shall
find Jesus Christ on the shore, in the port of eternal
salvation, where he will feed us with food altogether
divine.

" 6. And he said unto them, Cast the net on the
right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast
therefore; and now they were not able to draw it for
the multitude of fishes."

Jesus could have saved them this labour, in giving
them something to eat ; but he chooses rather to
bless, in his apostles, labour which he sanctified in
his own person, than to manifest his power in a
more evident and remarkable manner. He teaches
them, and us at the same time, to avoid idleness our-
selves, and to make the poor avoid it also by our giving
them alms in order to assist and enable them to work,
not to support and encourage them in laziness. O
what fruit do men produce by their labours in the
ecclesiastical ministry, when they are employed therein
by the appointment of God, and follow the truth of
his word ! The right side is the side of the elect:

2 d3

634 ST. JOHN.

when the net is cast on that side it is always filled
without breaking. The blessing which God gives
to his word in the mouth of a preacher, is the cause
of all the fruit which it brings forth; and this bless-
ing is no other than his will itself. When God has
touched a soul, and caused it to enter into the apos-
tolical net, all is not yet effected : it must be drawn
out of the water, and disengaged from the habits of
sin in which it was deeply plunged. This is the
work which requires the chief labour of pastors: in
bringing this to effect, no cares, no endeavours must
be spared.

" 7. Therefore that the disciple whom Jesus loved
saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now, when Simon
Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's
coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast him-
self into the sea."

The love of John is clear-sighted and full of light;
that of Peter active and zealous. Let us pray for
the light and understanding of the former, and imi-
tate the zeal and activity of the latter. The mutual
dependence which God has established in his church,
not only among the people, but even among the pas-
tors, shows itself plainly on this occasion. There
are some, who, being intent on the discovery of truth,
are instrumental in making Christ known to others ;
and these, as it were in return, making use of their
light, edify them by their good works, and encourage
them by their example. John does not proudly take
advantage of his light and knowledge to prevent
Peter, because he is humble, and not at all puffed up
therewith; and Peter, as soon as ever he is informed,
leaves not one moment unemployed, because he is
faithful and fervent in using his utmost endeavours.

CHAPTER XXI. 635

"8. And the other disciples came in a little ship,
(for they were not far from land, but as it were two
hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes."

All such in the church as piously lend their assis-
tance to guide souls to the haven of salvation, must
labour only in conjunction with the ordinary pastors,
and act under their authority. The ways of going
to God are different : some are ordinary, as in those
who came in this little ship ; others are extraordinary,
as in Peter, whose zeal prompted him to cast himself
into the sea. He is an emblem of pastors, who are
obliged to go to Christ through the rough sea of
this world, through the waters of persecution, through
the bitterness of affliction, and with the labour and
pains of one who swims to gain the shore.

" 9. As soon then as they were come to land, they
saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and
bread."

Here are miracles upon miracles. The same power
which filled the net with fishes in the midst of the
sea, creates others upon the land; to show these
disciples, that it was not from any want of power to
give them fish, that Christ asked them for some, and
ordered them to fish for them. He makes his pro-
vidence manifest to them, to the end that they may
put their whole trust and confidence therein, and that
they may never lay aside labour through fear of not
obtaining what is necessary. At the same time he
teaches them to be content with necessaries, by pre-
paring nothing sumptuous or superfluous for them,
as he could have done.

" 10. Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish
which ye have now caught."

636 ST. JOHN.

Every circumstance of this fishing is mysterious
and full of instruction. It seems as if our blessed
Saviour designed here to intimate to his apostles,
both the obligation they were under to live by their
labour, and the right they had to support and main-
tenance, as long as they should employ themselves in
the fishing which relates to souls. It is by means of
this kind of fishing that Jesus Christ feeds as it were
deliciously on those souls which his ministers draw
out of the depths of sin and error, and bring to him.
Of these his mystical body is formed, and is daily
growing to perfection.

"11. Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to
land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and
three; and for all there were so many, yet was not
the net broken."

How lawful soever our employments may be, we
meet with success only in proportion as Jesus Christ
engages us in them. It is the hand of Peter, it is
the pastoral hand, which must draw the net to land,
and present to Jesus Christ the fruit of the spiritual
fishing. In the church of heaven, where there will
be none but saints, how great soever the number of
them be, yet will not the net be broken. There will
be no longer any division or schism to be feared in
the bosom of unity, in the centre of peace, in the
kingdom of perfect charity. Vouchsafe, Lord, to
give us a foretaste of these fruits of peace, and to
shed abroad in our hearts the love of unity, and the
spirit of charity.

"12. Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And
none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou?
knowing that it was the Lord. 13. Jesus then

CHAPTER XXI. 637

cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish
likewise."

Jesus shows plainly, that he is the master of the
family in his church : it belongs to him to feed and
to assist it. No person has any share in the hea-
venly banquet of Christ risen from the dead, unless
he be invited thereto by his word, and drawn by his
grace. The apostles do not of themselves take their
food, it is Jesus Christ who gives it, and distributes
it among them, in what proportion he thinks fit, as
the sole master of his own gifts.

" 14. This is now the third time that Jesus showed
himself to his disciples after that he was risen from
the dead."

These three appearances of Jesus Christ are so
many evidences of his resurrection. He seems to
design to make his apostles amends for the three days
wherein they were deprived of the comfort of his
presence. He obviates all suspicions of mistake
and delusion ; it being impossible that so many per-
sons could be deceived all at once, and at so many
different times.

Sect. II. — Peter's love. Christ commits his sheep
to him ; and foretells his martyrdom.

" 15. % So, when they had dined, Jesus saith to
Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me
more than these ? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord ;
thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him,
Feed my lambs."

Jesus, by his wisdom, gives Peter, in these tew
words, an opportunity of making some reparation for
his infidelity, whilst he himself inspires into the

638 ST. JOHN.

secret recesses of his heart the will and purpose of
doing it. This profession of love is fervent and
undaunted; but it is'likewise humble and modest.
Peter is very far from preferring himself before any
one, remembering, that it was his advancing himself
above all the rest of the apostles which was the oc-
casion of his fall. Christ here teaches his church,
that she ought to have great regard to charity and
zeal in those whom she chooses for the sacred minis-
try; and, above all, that a pastor's love towards Jesus
Christ ought to be eminent and remarkable. Who-
ever does not feed the sheep of Christ at all, or feeds
them as being his own, is not properly a pastor, but
either a hireling or a thief.

" 16. He saith to him again the second time, Si-
mon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto
him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He
saith unto him, Feed my sheep."

Peter depends now only upon the knowledge which
Jesus Christ has of his heart, and not as formerly,
upon his own opinion. His answer, which is so full
of Christian confidence, courage, and humility, makes
it evident that he has profited by his fall in all re-
spects. He is very sensible what degree of love and
strength the grace of Christ has given him, without
being unmindful of the weakness of his own nature.
Christ knows Peter's heart even better than he him-
self does; but he repeats the same question to him
several times, to teach those to whom the ordaining
of pastors belongs, not to content themselves with a
slight inquiry into the qualifications of those who
are to undertake the care of souls.

" 17. He saith unto him the third time, Simon,

CHAPTER XXI. 639

son of Jonas, lovest thou me ? Peter was grieved
because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou
me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowestall
things ; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith
unto him, Feed my sheep."

Our blessed Saviour requires of Peter three pro-
testations of love, to the expiation of his three de-
nials; to teach us that the tongue ought to be made
at least as instrumental to charity as it has been to
concupiscence. Christ here requires of pastors no-
thing but love, and recommends nothing to them but
the care of his sheep ; because their love of Christ,
and their love of labour, are the two things concern-
ing which they ought chiefly to examine themselves :
it belongs to those who confer upon them their mis-
sion to examine into the rest. It is therefore an
instance of extreme rashness for a person to take
upon himself the pastoral office, without having
either a love for Jesus Christ, or a will and inclina-
tion to feed and serve his flock. Far from being any
ground at all for proud and lofty thoughts, it is a
just cause of fear and trembling, for a man to have
a more extensive service to perform, and a greater
account to give to God, not only of the lambs, which
are the laity, but likewise of the sheep, which repre-
sent the clergy.

" 18. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou
wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whi-
ther thou wouldest : but when thou shalt be old, thou
shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird
thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not."

The cross is, in this life, part of the reward of such
pastors as are faithful in the discharge of their duty.

640 ST. JOHN.

The greater share we have in the authority of Jesus
Christ, the greater must we expect to have in his
sufferings. God does not require of us that we
should not feel within ourselves any repugnance or
aversion to the evils of this life ; but only that we
should oppose that aversion, and overcome it by his
grace ; that we should subdue the carnal will by the
spiritual, and the love of temporal life by the love of
that which is eternal. It is the pastor himself who
is to feed his Master's sheep ; but it is another who
is to crucify the pastor, when his death is to glorify
God. This is the last consecration of the hands of
an apostle, which have been already consecrated by
the Christian sacrifice and the ministry of salvation,
to have them nailed to the cross of Christ, as part of
his victim and sacrifice.

" 19. This spake he, signifying by what death he
should glorify God. And when he had spoken this,
he saith unto him, Follow me."

A Christian, and more especially a pastor, ought
to make it his study how to imitate his Master. To
glorify God, and to follow Jesus Christ : this is the
whole work which he has to do. The prediction of
so cruel a death is dreadful news to the flesh ; but it
is matter of great comfort and consolation to faith, for
a man to be assured that by his death he shall glo-
rify God. Nothing is more for the glory of Christ,
than to have disciples who choose rather to lay down
their lives than to renounce his doctrine : this is
what the philosophers could never find in their schools.
There is seldom any danger now of being exposed to
death for the sake of Christ ; but there is still enough
to try the fidelity of a true Christian and of a faithful

CHAPTER XXI. 641

pastor, who is desirous to follow Jesus Christ even
to the cross."

M 20. Then Peter, turning about, seeth the dis-
ciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned
on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he
that betrayeth thee? 21. Peter, seeing him, saith
to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do ?"

How great is the difference betwixt Peter before
the death of Christ, and Peter after his resurrection !
The cross of Christ terrified him then, and now even
his own does not in the least dismay him. It rejoices
him to be assured that he shall recover an opportunity
of being crucified with Christ, which his infidelity
caused him to lose. 9 He then pretended to distin-
guish himself from all the rest of the apostles, by
dying alone with his Master : but now he is very
desirous to share that honour with his friends and
brethren. This is no instance of human friendship.
This solicitous care of Peter for John, is an evident
token of the union betwixt these two apostles, and of
a friendship which Christ in nowise blames. We
may even justly say, that Peter did no more than fol-
low the example and inclination of our blessed Savi-
our, in loving with a particular affection " the disciple
whom Jesus loved." How wonderful, O Jesus, are
the effects of thy grace ! and how proper to inspire
trust and confidence, not only into thy disciples, but
even into the greatest sinners !

" 22. Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry
till I come, what is that to thee ? Follow thou me.
23. Then went this saying abroad among the breth-
ren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said
not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that
he tarry till I come, what is that to thee ?"

642 ST. JOHN.

Jesus here teaches pastors, that their solicitous
care should never carry them so far as to pry into
the designs of God concerning others, in relation to
the future, but only to assist them to continue faith-
ful to him. Let us use our utmost endeavours to
follow Christ in discharging our own duty, and to
render ourselves worthy of his cross; this is our pro-
per business: it belongs to God to dispose of others
according to the good pleasure of his will. Peter,
being as yet imperfect in his friendship, is drawn
aside to curiosity, to teach us to avoid it. This was
a very unseasonable curiosity : for that which Christ
had just told him concerning his martyrdom, ought to
have engaged him to employ his whole mind in pay-
ing him the great duties of thanksgiving, humilia-
tion, acceptance of his cross, &c. Let us take great
care that we do not receive the graces of God negli-
gently. Instead of seriously reflecting upon them
within ourselves, we often suffer our minds to wander
abroad in vain and impertinent curiosity.

" 24. This is the disciple which testifieth of these
things, and wrote these things; and we know that
his testimony is true."

Great saint ! we receive thy testimony, we believe
every thing which thou hast written, we reverence
the truths which thou hast taught us, and which thou
learnedst in the bosom of truth itself. Grant us,
Lord, the grace to love, to relish, and to practise
them, and to make all the use of them which we
ought ; that we may be counted worthy to behold
them openly one day, in that very fountain from
whence thy beloved disciple drew them.

" 25. And there are also many other things which

CHAPTER XXI. 643

Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every
one, I suppose that even the world itself could not
contain the books that should be written. Amen."
We know only the least part of those things which
Jesus did and taught upon earth. If we do not
make use of that which is written, to what end would
that which is not have served, but only to our greater
condemnation ? Let us be content to adore that of
which we know nothing. Let us put in practice
every part of his law which we do know; let us beg
the grace that we may be willing to perform what we
are able, and that we may be able to perform what
we are willing ; and let us labour without intermis-
sion, desiring earnestly that happiness which we
expect. Yes, Lord Jesus, come quickly ; for it is
thou whom we expect, and we look not for another.
Amen.

FINIS.

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